The latest issue of Shape magazine which went on sale yesterday was supplied with an old copy of Men’s Fitness from may this year The two magazines were held together with a paper strap (see photo) half way down the cover which would not be seen once the magazines are traditional newsagency shelves. Indeed, this strap would be easily damaged by customers shoving the stock back into the pocket.
Considering the flimsy paper strap and the state of the old copies of Men’s Fitness I decided to remove the free magazine from the offer. This also enabled me to fit all the stock in one pocket and thereby better manage the real estate costs associated with this issue of Shape.
While applaud a publisher looking for more browser friendly ways of placing a few magazine with a current issue, the approach taken with Shape is not ideal.