New celebrity magazine, Closer, which featured the cover story of Valerie Harper ’s brave battle with cancer in its first issue , produced just tepid sales results.
And then things got a lot worse in week 2.
The debut issue, which hit on Oct. 31, was heavily promoted by Bauer Publications, the American subsidiary of the German-based parent that specializes in making money on the newsstand — not through subscriptions.
Bauer distributed 2 million copies at a special low price of 25 cents — and sold an estimated 325,000 to 420,000 copies, according to a reliable source.
The company already publishes a popular celebrity title, Closer, in England and Germany. Its US edition is trying something slightly different, combining women’s service with celebrity coverage.
But in week 2, carrying its normal $3.99 price and featuring Sharon Osbourne on the cover, single-copy sales tumbled to less than 90,000. Bauer distributed 500,000 copies to newsstands, according to the source.
Ian Scott, president of Bauer Advertising Sales, said because the publication is so new, he doesn’t believe he is getting accurate figures on newsstand sales yet.
“The early numbers are based on estimates from a very small sample, and we can’t be sure how it is selling in the rest of the country,” he said.
The title is expected to play bigger in the great heartland than on the East or West coasts.
Life & Style, another Bauer title, which saw a 21 percent tumble in newsstand sales in the first six months of the year, to 271,504, will move the date when editors “close” an issue to five days before it begins hitting newsstands.
The magazine, which is available in some parts of the country on Wednesday, had been closing Monday evenings. Its closing date will be moved up three days — to before the weekend, when celebrities frequently make news.
“Life & Style has always played more as a fashion and beauty magazine rather than a pure celebrity play like In Touch,” said Scott.
In Touch will keep its traditional close on Mondays, he said, and both titles will reach newsstands the same day as People and Us Weekly, the two largest titles in the field.