OK!
"OK! dominates the British celebrity market and is first for celebrity news worldwide"
OK! Magazine
The flagship title today is the celebrity lifestyle magazine OK! which is widely acknowledged to be the publishing phenomenon of the decade. This aspirational and inspirational magazine, with luxurious photography and striking covers, is a powerful force in the hugely popular, buoyant and enduring celebrity market.
OK! was launched as a monthly in March 1993. Heavy investment and unremitting work built an Audit Bureau of Circulation figure of about 220,000 in three years. Then the second part of the strategy was initiated, bringing the title from monthly to weekly frequency. This was a move unprecedented in magazine publishing but with more investment it paid off. OK! began to overtake its main rival within three years of the weekly launch and established itself as Britain's leading title in terms of news-stand revenue earnings it currently outsells Hello! magazine two to one.
The magazine features the most talked-about celebrities in Britain and around the world; it proudly carries the banner 'first for celebrity news'. Early worldwide exclusives included Pamela Anderson's first baby Brandon Thomas Lee, Michael Jackson's baby Prince Michael Junior in 1997 and the marriage of David Beckham to the then Victoria Adams in Luttrellstown Castle, Dublin. OK! was invited exclusively to cover the lavish, star-studded wedding of Catherine Zeta Jones and Michael Douglas in the Grand Ballroom of the New York Plaza Hotel, Joan Collins's wedding to Percy Gibson in London's Claridge's Hotel, the wedding of Kym Marsh and Jack Ryder at St Albans Cathedral and the weddings of Katie Price and Peter André at Highclere Castle, Christina Aguilera in the Napa Valley, Demi Moore at her Beverly Hills estate and countless others. The magazine strives to maintain its leadership every week, building the necessary relationships of trust with the world's greatest stars.
OK! Overseas Editions
The OK! brand reaches far beyond the borders of its home market. The UK edition is sold in more than 50 countries and the company has already set up its own operation in Australia. Editions are also produced under licence in China, the Middle East, the Philippines, Thailand, Singapore, India, Turkey, Mexico, Greece, and Malaysia with imminent launches including Spain, Russia, and South Africa - all part of a new overseas strategy which began in 2004. Thanks to this expansion, OK! can be enjoyed in different languages with a compelling mix of local celebrity news and OK!'s exclusive international content, with more launches on the way.
OK!'s North American edition represents America's biggest ever magazine launch in terms of initial presence at retail. The magazine gave its advertisers a rate base guarantee of 350,000 at launch and its first ABC audit exceeded that figure by 100,000, coming in at around 450,000. The magazine has been dramatically exceeding its own projections ever since and is the fastest growing title in its sector. Working with Quebecor, the world's largest printer, OK! North America is printed in centres at Quad Graphics, Martinsburg, West Virginia, Quebecor, Murced, California and Quebecor, Mississippi. It is distributed nationally and is available in all major retail multiples. As with all editions of OK! the winning formula is one of positive, upbeat editorial and breathtaking pictorial exclusives with the highest profile stars of film, television and the world of entertainment. Extensive reader research has resulted in a magazine specially adapted to the needs of the US market with an emphasis on powerful exclusives and up-to-the-minute news coverage.
OK! has also achieved popularity among upmarket readers by pioneering the idea of an all-round celebrity-based title which surpasses rivals in traditional areas of women's interest. Along with intimate presentations of celebrities and their lifestyles, readers enjoy diary, travel, beauty, hair, food and health features, horoscopes and World In Action - photographs of major news events.
Since February 2002, OK! readers have enjoyed the bonus of its vibrant supplement HotStars, distributed free with OK!, which targets a younger reader looking for pictures and stories of celebrities offguard. It also carries comprehensive TV listings. The emphasis is still on lifestyle and enjoyment and OK! magazine with HotStars stitched inside makes an unbeatable package with something for every age and style.
ABC audited figures in January 2006 confirmed OK! once again as market leader in the premium women's weekly sector and the dominant force in terms of news-stand revenue. The audited circulation was 649,777 with a readership of 2,561,000 adults including 502,000 ABC1 women aged 25-44. In the current period, UK full-price single-copy sales are up 21 per cent year on year.