Photo: Beautiful Minds Media
Petra Winter from MADAME: A Magazin That Inspires
Beauty, luxury and style: this is what the two print magazines MADAME and MONSIEUR, published by Beautiful Minds Media, are all about. Editor-in-chief and partner Petra Winter talks in an interview about how the print magazines are proving themselves in the face of digitalization and why a magazine about the finer things in life is needed, especially in times of crisis and war.
Ms. Winter, MADAME magazine stands for “beauty, ingenuity and warmth of heart” – what does “beauty” mean to you?
Petra Winter: For me, beauty is something that allows you to calm down in a positive way. Something you look forward to, something you enjoy looking at or reading, for example something beautifully written. For me, beauty is not just about appearance, but also about content. This plays an important role for us as a media brand, because we want to show our readers in MADAME and MONSIEUR a beautiful, relaxed, positive world that consciously transports them away from their everyday lives.
MADAME has been around since 1952, but the role of women has changed a lot since the 1950s. To what extent has MADAME changed over time?
Winter: MADAME has always moved with the times in terms of emancipation and feminism. It has always been a leading figure for women, was deliberately not conservative and has challenged women, giving them more confidence. Nevertheless, gender roles were different back then than they are today. Just as we women have changed over the last few decades, MADAME has also evolved. After all, we are a magazine by women for women. This means that feminism always plays an implicit role for us. We want to encourage women that they can achieve anything they want, that they are good just the way they are, that they don't have to be without a man to be happy, but that they can be happy on their own. We do this in a relaxed tone. Our readers are on average 47 years old and don't want to be lectured or bothered.
“We are neither an advisor nor a friend, we are an inspiration”
Advisor, friend, trendsetter – what role does MADAME want to play for its readers?
Winter: We are neither a guide nor a friend, we are an inspiration. We encourage our readers to engage with things that are not always directly in their field of vision. For example, we have a section called “Kunstkammer”. In it, my colleague, Dr. Simone Herrmann, presents women artists from history – women who have been underestimated for decades, sometimes even centuries, and are still underestimated today. Their works are in museums, but are still traded at auctions at significantly lower prices than those of men. I believe that this section is incredibly valuable for our female readers because it opens up their horizons and allows them to learn new things. But our content is also a certain endorsement of our target group, namely the luxury-loving woman who likes to reward herself with beautiful things. We report a lot on haute couture and haute joaillerie, and the things we show are often insanely expensive. However, it is important to us that as a fashion magazine we are not seen as purely commercial. Rather, we want to pay tribute to the art and craftsmanship behind these products. Our aim is to promote appreciation for these professions.
»The conflicts we have to deal with are so big that we can no longer influence them – whether it's wars, the climate crisis or acts of terrorism. As a result, a feeling of powerlessness has spread. I think it's good to have a medium at this moment that takes you out of that and transports you into a world of beauty.«
Petra Winter
In times of war and crisis, you continue to focus on topics relating to aesthetics and “sustainable luxury”. Why do we need a “feel good” magazine like MADAME right now?
Winter: Many people feel overwhelmed by the amount of bad news. The conflicts we have to deal with are so big that we can no longer influence them - whether it's wars, the climate crisis or acts of terrorism. As a result, a feeling of powerlessness has spread and is creeping into our everyday lives, whether we like it or not. I think it's good to have a medium at this moment that takes you out of this and transports you into a world of beauty – deliberately not online, but as a print magazine. It seems like a self-contained, intact world that takes your mind off things.
Expectations, interests and values are becoming increasingly divergent in our society and target groups are becoming more fragmented. How much do you notice this?
Winter: Not really at all. We already have a very specific target group. We are in the luxury segment, MADAME costs nine euros, those who buy us generally do so very consciously and belong to a certain social group. In this respect, our target group has always been a fragment. Of course, there are also different attitudes within a group, but what unites our readers is a certain intelligence and the associated tolerance towards those who think differently. For example, I never get nasty emails from readers complaining that we have shown another necklace that is too expensive. At the same time, we deliberately want to get our readers out of their own bubble by showing diverse images of women of all ages, nationalities and ethnicities.
"Our current fanbase is the most important multiplier for us"
Your target group is women over 40. Do you have a strategy for reaching future generations?
Winter: We are focusing on mothers who have daughters. We often hear that our readers pass MADAME on within the family. Our fanbase is the most important multiplier for us. To appeal to millennials, for example, we have the “Mademoiselle” section in the magazine. Here we present young women who are not only interesting for our core readership, but who also reflect future generations.
The world is becoming increasingly digital and with it the reading habits of many people. As a print magazine, how much are you struggling with this?
Winter: We are not just a print magazine, but a media brand with a website and all the usual platforms. Of course, the competition in the digital space is huge, whether it's Google, YouTube, Netflix or social media – all these platforms attract attention and occupy our readers' time budgets. We try to use the strengths of social media and our website to promote our brand in the luxury environment. By interacting a lot with our readers, we get to know them even better and can position and address our own products and those of our customers even better.
In addition to MADAME, your media company also publishes its counterpart for men, MONSIEUR. How does the editorial work of the two products differ, apart from the target group?
Winter: There is actually no difference. With MONSIEUR, we are explicitly producing a men's magazine from a women's point of view, so we don't have to pretend at all. We have a male fashion editor, Konstantin Spachis, who works for both titles, and a few more male authors at MONSIEUR – but for many topics, it doesn't matter what gender the author is. Just like MADAME, MONSIEUR is all about style, fashion, jewelry, art and lifestyle.
One might assume that women in particular are receptive to aesthetic, beautiful things and are therefore easier to target. Is that a cliché?
Winter: Yes. Men also find it nice to know about the latest watches, winter coats or travel destinations. We are targeting a modern generation of men who are interested in what women think, who question themselves and are willing to learn. But here, too, the tenor is that we don't want to dictate anything to anyone, but want to offer inspiration for a beautiful and all-round positive life.
A perfect Match with publisher Asma Al Fahim
With MADAME Arabia, you have a license in the Middle East. How important are such licenses in order to survive as a magazine?
Winter: MADAME has survived wonderfully for over 70 years without a license. The fact that we have now been granted a license after all is due to our connection to a successful Arab publisher, Asma Al Fahim. A perfect match! She convinced us that our brand is exactly what is missing in the young luxury market - the average person in the Emirates is 31 years old. We publish MADAME in English there – including on all digital channels – and target the educated locals and the expat community.
Apart from subscriptions and magazine sales, what sources of revenue have become more important for you?
Winter: Events have become a very big topic. During Corona, the business was dead, of course, but the market exploded afterwards. It's important for us because it's a profitable business model – and our partners are happy to do it with us because they know that we reach a clientele that is important to them and that they can tap into new target groups as a result. The concept works very well and the feedback is always positive.
What strategy does Beautiful Minds Media want to pursue in the future?
Winter: We believe that we do a good job for our target group in terms of content and are well positioned thematically. What we are working on more intensively, however, is the 360° brand experience. The magazine is one part of this, but it also includes other activities, such as events. As part of this, we also want to get to know our readers even better so that we can make them better offers. We want to strengthen their trust and that of our customers. I regularly meet our target group at our events and am always delighted at how much enthusiasm and appreciation I receive. That is the best “capital”!