Business

Put a fork in them

Condé Nast CEO Charles Townsend carried out the biggest bloodbath in the publishing giant’s history, shutting down four magazines — Gourmet, Cookie, Elegant Bride and Modern Bride — and laying off around 180 people.

Insiders are bracing for more cuts in the weeks ahead, and rumors are circulating that Hearst and Time Inc. may soon follow suit.

The move came after management-consulting firm McKinsey & Co. completed its three months of work inside America’s glitziest magazine publisher, run by billionaire S.I. Newhouse Jr.

As part of the review, editors and publishers were told to slash expenses by an average of 25 percent; those cuts are separate from the closures unveiled yesterday. The 2010 budgets are due in two weeks, and inevitably will involve more personnel reductions.

Reed Phillips of media investment bank DeSilva + Phillips predicted that other publishers will now fold magazines.

“This gives them some cover,” he said. “No one wants to be the first to do it.”

The company said it plans to continue Gourmet’s book-publishing and TV show, and that its last surviving bridal magazine, Brides, will now be published monthly instead of six times a year.

Townsend said that a number of magazines will roll back their frequency from 12 times per year. The internal rumor mill has it that Allure and W would see frequency reductions.

In his memo to staffers announcing the cuts, Townsend said, “Condé Nast’s success comes from the ability of our publications to attract readers with a wide range of interests as well as advertisers who value them. But in this economic climate, it is important to narrow our focus to titles with the greatest prospects for long-term growth.”

In a separate interview with The Post, he said, “These [closed] magazines represented a fairly considerable financial burden.” Townsend said the company is assuming it has reduced expenses enough to survive with flat advertising in 2010. “This is really about 2010, 2011 and 2012,” he said.

He also said no more magazine closures were coming: “That’s it. We’re done.”

But Condé Nast already closed two magazines this year, Domino and Portfolio. As one insider said, “They have a pretty bad record of saying they are not going to close any more magazines and then closing some more magazines.”

The biggest shocker yesterday was the demise of 68-year-old Gourmet and the departure of its editor-in-chief, Ruth Reichl, who had earned a seven-figure salary and rock-star status over her 10 years at Condé Nast. Gourmet was the loser in the internal battle against the company’s other foodie title, Bon Appetit.

“Personally, I’m surprised that they chose to close Gourmet, which I would consider one of their flagship brands along with Vanity Fair and Vogue, and a magazine so rich in history with an editor that is so well-respected,” said Suzanne Silber, a senior vice president at media ad buying agency Optimedia.

Most laid-off workers were given until tomorrow to pack their desks.

A precious few are being spared. Carolyn Kremins, the publisher of Cookie, will replace Allison Matz as publisher of Brides magazine.

Nanci Berger, who was publisher of Gourmet, is also potentially landing somewhere, although Condé Nast shot down a rumor that she was heading to Teen Vogue.

Cookie Editor-in-Chief Pilar Guzman, who only learned yesterday morning that her magazine was being shut, said, “I had a feeling that on the heels of the cuts, there could be some closures, but I didn’t think it would be now.”