When flicking through any fashion magazine, we come to expect to be bombarded with images from brands purposely positioned and poised, ready to pounce on fashion victims. However with the recent downfall of men’s fashion publications Arena and Maxim, it raises the question – what does the future hold for male fashion advertising? 

As i-D cuts back to six issues a year and Bauer Media, the publisher behind FHM, cuts back jobs in its advertising division, it’s looking like everyone is in trouble. 

According to Chris Dolan from Slam PR “the demise of magazines is due to a reduction in ad spend as more brands have begun to engage with consumers online” and Heather Iwanow, an International Fashion Marketing lecturer at Manchester Metropolitan University agrees.  “Inevitably brands will use online promotion” to “support the growth” in the online channel of distribution says Heather, and I they both may be onto something. 

Despite the decline of two men’s magazines, there has been an increase in online communications via the addictive yet lucrative channels, Twitter, Facebook and YouTube, and Maxim’s online publication, which launched in 1999, continues to thrive with 500, 000 users a month and 260, 000 monthly subscribers to their e-news letter.  Not bad considering its print counterpart has now been relegated to the recycling bin.

            If ASOS can successfully capitalise upon online promotion and distribution isn’t it about time everyone else caught up?