MetropolitanHome is experiencing a rebirth. Next April, Hearst Design Group is premiering a pilot issue of the reimagined interiors and lifestyle publication. The project is in its early stages right now—there aren’t even any cover images yet to share. But Hearst Design Group editorial director NewellTurner, who started his own career at the original MetropolitanHome and is pioneering the new project, answered a few of EAL’s burning questions about the publication.
What inspired the new MetropolitanHome?
There is an opportunity in the market for an ultra-urban, contemporary design and lifestyle magazine. We’re going to highlight very personal interiors and stories that encourage readers to decorate their homes to reflect their lives. Our plan is to publish a spring/summer pilot issue in April 2016. Then, we will gauge consumer and advertiser interest, and we’ll decide what’s next. We’ve just started producing content for the issue, and I believe consumers in their 30s and 40s are going to love it.
What has changed in the home/design industry since MetropolitanHome closed in 2009? How will the magazine respond?
The pilot issue is not going to pick up where MetropolitanHome in its original incarnation left off. Readers have changed, and the printed magazine experience continues to evolve. Magazines are highly tactile and create a long, lingering consumer experience. It’s a different mindset and a different relationship than that of a digital platform.
Readers will find contemporary, global decorating and thoughtful essays on modern living. We’ll feature the stylish, passionate people who are making homes, building careers and shaping communities in city centers. We’re starting with a circulation of 115,000—the issue will be sent to select Hearst Magazines subscribers. It will also be available on newsstands in key cities.
Newell Turner
Who are you hiring?
I’m overseeing the project, which is being produced within the Hearst Design Group, supported by a few key independent contributors and a variety of freelance photographers and writers. I started my career at MetHome, so it is that much more exciting to bring the brand’s original energy to a new audience of readers who are refining their own personal styles.
What is your digital strategy?
We’ve recently activated several social media platforms to offer a taste of the kind of content we’ll be featuring in the pilot issue. In particular, we’re using Instagram and Pinterest to establish the editorial focus, and later, we’ll feature content that complements the printed magazine.
What aspects of the magazine will change in this new iteration, and what will stay the same?
It’s about building a relationship with consumers in their 30s and 40s through great contemporary design and a focus on city living. We went back to the DNA of MetropolitanHome to create something fresh but still true to the original magazine that had such a passionate following. We’re positioning the new MetropolitanHome for Gen X—consumers in their 40s—but with a millennial spirit. The first wave of the millennial generation is 30-something, and while they may not be spending heavily across all the lifestyle categories, they are already spending where their passions lie.