Working Mother Debuts Celebrity Cover Strategy

Title becomes the latest in a string of transitions from everyday to high-profile personalities.

By Bill Mickey
Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Working Mother, a 800,000-circ magazine published eight times per year, will now be featuring celebrity and other high-profile moms on every cover of the magazine. Following positive reader feedback on the concept, the cover stories will spring from what used to be a celebrity guest column.

Covers will feature well-known mothers from sports, celebrity and television, among other areas, who talk about the challenges of raising children in the midst of a busy career.

So far, the magazine only has one issue left to book for 2010. The February/March issue is the first celebrity cover and features Olympic gold medal skater Kristi Yamaguchi. "A lot of celebrity moms were excited about being on our covers," said Suzanne Riss, Working Mother's editor-in-chief, who added that shooting well-known personalities is easier because they're accustomed to the process.

Riss said transitioning from everyday moms to high-profile moms has not been difficult, or more expensive, to execute. The photo budget has not been increased, although costs might be reallocated as cover subjects bring in their own makeup artists or stylists.

Rodale's Women's Health followed a similar path, introducing celebrity covers with the October, 2008 issue. More recently, MediaWeek reported that Scholastic Parent & Child followed the same strategy, putting Julianne Moore on its February issue.

Bonnier Corp. acquired Working Mother Media in September 2008.