Month: January 2022

Focus, the Mondadori Group brand leader in spreading scientific knowledge, has completed its first 30 years and is looking to the future with Focus Next 30: a multi-touchpoint special project which will accompany readers and users throughout 2022, exploring key themes in science, technology and the environment and examining the innovations that will fuel development in these areas over the next 30 years, with contributions from distinguished international figures.

The initiative leverages the strength and the successful formula that have always characterised the brand.

Focus has been a household publication since 1992, satisfying people’s curiosity and desire for knowledge with an unmistakeable clear and direct style which, combined with contributions from scientists and specialists, has made the brand a go-to magazine for a community of 5.2 million readers and users (source: Nielsen Media Impact Data Fusion, May 2021).

In its 30 years, Focus has been a reliable source of information on science, technology, the environment, medicine, nutrition, lifestyles and sustainability, in print, on the web, on social media, through local events such as Focus Live, through Academy for schools, TV and podcasts: a complete multimedia information platform, making new discoveries accessible and exciting for an ever growing public, helping readers and users distinguish fake news, learn about history and make their way in the various branches of knowledge.

The great questions of yesterday, today and tomorrow will be at the heart of the Focus Next 30 special project: a year of events and discussions on all the brand channels to get ready for the changes coming in the next 30 years. The journey begins with the innovations recounted by Focus since it was first published and will move ahead – with the faces of tomorrow, chosen from the top names in the scientific community – to look at how our world will change.

“We want to give this 30th anniversary the meaning that any birthday can have: to change, grow and become even more what we already are. Out of interest, I leafed through the issues from the first year of Focus, 1992. Two things struck me straightaway: the same sense of eager curiosity we still have today and the incredible strides that have been made in science, technology and medicine in just thirty years. So, with each issue, you’ll find the format that came to mind. It will be a fascinating journey through the past, present and future, highlighting the extraordinary capabilities of scientific research, the speed of improvement, our aptitude for progress through intelligence and the human soul,” said Raffaele Leone, editor-in-chief of Focus.

Renewable energy, sustainability, medicine of the future, home automation, mobility, food, cybersecurity and much else: for each topic, every month Focus will turn to an international specialist, young talents from the worlds of science and information, who will share their vision with the brand community, offering a new perspective on the future.

In the latest issue of Italy’s most widely read monthly magazine, on the news-stands from 22 January, the cover story will look at digital medicine, intelligent apps that follow patients and the growing use of technology to link physicians and patients remotely. The magazine will also examine the volcanic eruptions forecast in the first issue from 1992, to discuss the future of this discipline.

Another important feature in the new issue will be fourth-generation nuclear energy, particularly of interest given the possibility that the European Union will include it as a sustainable source of energy. The nuclear question will be linked to a survey to investigate the opinions of Focus readers and users. The questionnaire will be available on the brand website and social profiles, which will also publish its findings.

The Focus Next 30 project will continue throughout 2022 on all the channels of the Focus system with a circular dynamic offer: in the magazine readers will find a theme-based dossier starting with an article published in 1992, the first year of Focus, to investigate the changes and developments that have taken place since them and the forecasts and expectations for the coming years.

On Focus.it, users will be able to look in detail at the themes covered by Focus Next 30 in a special section providing in-depth features and exclusive video-interviews on the theme for the month.
On social media, Focus Next 30 will offer a range of content designed to engage the brand’s 4 million fans (source: Shareablee e Insight, December 2021), with live content, posts, surveys, quizzes, as well as podcasts – where Focus currently has more than 2 million downloads – with the Focus Storia special documentary series “Focus Next 30, dal passato al futuro”.

The Focus Next 30 initiatives will culminate with the new edition of the Focus Live event, an important festival of knowledge hosting researchers, scientists, explorers, artists and communicators, with a packed schedule of meetings and activities. Starting in the spring, this year’s Focus Live, to be held in November, will be flanked by a series of live and digital events, including talks, meetings and round tables on the subjects covered by Focus Next 30.

Grazia USA, the American edition of Grazia created under a licensing agreement signed by the Mondadori Group with Pantheon Media Group LLC, has been named “Best New Magazine Launch” of 2021.

Grazia USA was chosen for the honour out of more than 120 new publications launched in America during the past year thanks to its ability to combine quality content with cutting-edge images in the magazine’s inimitable refined style. The honour was awarded as a result of the ranking drawn up by Samir Husni, founder and director of the Magazine Innovation Center at the School of Journalism and New Media of the University of Mississippi.

The acknowledgement crowns the success of the first 100% Italian fashion brand on one of the world’s biggest and most important markets for fashion and luxury goods.

Present on the American market through the global digital first platform graziamagazine.com, Grazia USA launched its first quarterly print issue on 23 September 2021 under the title “Evolution”. The 356-page special edition celebrated three women who have risen to success on the American cultural and social scene, featured on three exclusive covers: nine-time Olympic medal winner Allyson Felix, British supermodel and designer Alek Wek, and Canadian singer, actor and activist Jordan Alexander

The début of Grazia USA marks a turning point for American fashion magazines in a year when the United States saw twice as many new print magazines launched as in 2020.

The brand has been a success with American readers right from the start for its unique cosmopolitan blend of fashion, art, culture and beauty, as well as design, travel and entertainment, putting new generations in contact with the most influential, renowned names in the fashion industry thanks to distribution through the world’s most exclusive retailers.

“We’re proud of this acknowledgement obtained by Grazia USA and very happy with the results achieved by our partner Pantheon Media Group in the United States. Our brand’s business model based on a global multi-channel approach has great potential for development on other markets too, combining authoritative content with strategic use of data for positioning that really makes us stand out,” emphasised Daniela Sola, International Business Managing Director for Mondadori Media.

“It’s a great honour to receive this award. I’m very proud of the work the editorial staff of Grazia USA has done, leading to creation of an outstanding product that meets the requirements of both readers and advertisers. We’re lucky to have our partners’ support conveying quality content about fashion, luxury, entertainment and much more to over 400,000 certified readers and millions of site visitors every month,” said Brendan Monaghan, Chief Global Brands Officer and Executive Vice-President of the Pantheon Media Group.

Grazia is the first 100% Italian fashion magazine to have exported its successful formula all over the world, from Italy to the United States. The Mondadori Group brand, which now has a total of 21 editions in 23 countries, reaches a global audience of 15 million readers and 45 million unique visitors, with more than 30 million followers on social media.

Icon, the Mondadori Group’s men’s fashion and lifestyle brand, ushers in the year 2022 with a celebration of Italian talent and style in a special issue available at news-stands starting tomorrow, focusing on the excellence that makes Italy unique.

“We call our first issue of 2022 “È stile italiano” (“That’s Italian style”) to pay tribute to the talented people we believe best represent Italy. All these artists are “made in Italy”, an expression that has, over the past few decades, come to stand for truly excellent products and outstanding people, whose stories we will be telling on the pages of Icon, explaining how they became icons of our unique and inimitable Italian identity. Inimitable, because everything that is made in Italy stands out not only for its style, but for the designer’s culture and approach to design. In short, it’s our culture that makes us unique! This is why the world continues to be amazed and fascinated by everything ‘made in Italy’. It’s the perfect cover for our country,” comments Andrea Tenerani, editor-in-chief of Icon.

Six faces will be featured in the January issue’s cover stories: world champion gymnast Nicola Bartolini; tennis player Matteo Berrettini, the first Italian to qualify for the finals at Wimbledon; rapper Blanco, a phenomenal success in Italian music today; two new faces in Italian film, Giuseppe Maggio and Lorenzo Zurzolo, and world superstar Laura Pausini, whom editor-in-chief Andrea Tenerani himself chose for the cover of Icon.

The first Italian to win a Grammy, a Golden Globe, four Latin Grammies and an Oscar nomination, Laura Pausini bares her soul in her interview with Icon. The star’s lifestyle is tempered by the down-to-earth attitude typical of the people of her region, Romagna: “When I travel alone, I always ask for the smallest room in the hotel, because being alone in a big room makes me anxious. The global head of Warner Brothers once told me I was the only singer to record for the company who had never used a hotel minibar!” She talks about her family and her idols, such as Sophia Loren: “I want to be as serious, concentrated, dedicated, and disciplined as I believe she is.” She has a comment about the Italian rock group Måneskin: “Everything they do makes a splash in Italy, and I’m happy for them. I used to do the same kind of thing, but in those days there were no social networks, so nobody knew what I was up to!”

The January issue of Icon also features great Italian stylists and entrepreneurs such as Armani, discussing his ties with the world of film; Brunello Cucinelli, and his idea of business; and Andrea della Valle, with his winning combination of heritage and innovation. The Destination Future section focuses on stories of Italian know-how, both famous and unknown: from the mystery of Stradivarius violins to the rediscovery of visionary stylist Rosa Genoni, as well as world-renowned artists and musicians, films, indie magazines and much more. Lastly, in the Voices section, authors like Stefano Bartezzaghi and Nadeesha Uyangoda talk about how they see Italy.

The magazine, website and social networks dedicate plenty of space to men’s passions at the start of 2022, from beauty to beverages and from travel to automobiles, presenting plenty of news and sneak previews. In the month of July, this content will be further expanded with the return to the news-stand of Icon Wheels, a special issue of Icon concerned entirely with cars and motorbikes, showcasing the most iconic and desirable models.

This celebration of the people who have made Italy an example of excellence that stands out all over the world will culminate on the catwalks of Pitti Immagine Uomo with the exclusive event “È stile italiano” – “That’s Italian style”, organised by Icon. This very special evening will bring together some of the most prominent people in the fashion industry at the Four Seasons Hotel in Florence on Monday, January 10, including Pitti Immagine CEO Raffaello Napoleone. The honoured guest of the evening will be violinist Charlie Siem, offering a truly outstanding performance.

To provide additional visibility for this showcase of all-Italian faces, traditions and excellence, during the fair dates Icon will also be distributed at Milano Centrale and Firenze Santa Maria Novella railway stations. The first of the 8 issues of the magazine to be published in 2022 will also enjoy the support of a communication campaign via digital out-of-home advertising circuits.

Mondadori Media, Italy’s leading multimedia publisher with 55.5 million fans on social networks, has signed a partnership with Twitter to join the Twitter Amplify program, which allows the possibility to amplify and promote video contents on the platform, reaching an even wider audience.

The agreement involves the Twitter accounts of the Mondadori Media brands Giallozafferano, MyPersonalTrainer, TheWom, Smartworld, Focus, NostroFiglio and Studenti, which are real points of reference in vertical segments linked to the passions of Italians – from cooking to wellness, from technology to science and training – with 1.6 million followers overall.

The partnership highlights the strength of Mondadori Media, chosen as an important partner to get in touch with valuable audiences through innovative content, relying on consolidated know-how in the production of videos for social media: an area in which Mondadori Media has already strong experience and leadership, thanks to an internal team dedicated to the co-production of editorial content with partner brands and successful special projects.

Thanks to this agreement, Mondadori Media and Twitter will offer partner companies the possibility of inserting pre-roll advertising videos, before the contents published by the Mondadori Media brands.

Mondadori Media will further expand the development of branded content social projects and initiatives on Twitter. This will extend the opportunities for companies and investors interested in reaching new audiences based on their needs and in an authoritative, transparent and highly interactive context thanks to the involvement of the Mondadori Media brand communities, making advertising communication ever more effective.

Giallozafferano, the leading food media brand in Italy, continues to grow on social media, with a global fanbase that has now topped 35 million thanks to the acquisition of the Foodqood profiles.

Created by chef Khalid El Mahi, Foodqood is the world’s fourth largest cookery profile on TikTok by number of fans, and the top profile in Italy.
In little more than a year, Foodqood, which is also on Instagram, has accumulated more than 13 million followers, with an increase of 1 million fans in the last 30 days, attracted by short dynamic videos that have gone viral in Italy and around the world, with each one attracting an average of more than 6 million views.

Its success is due to the talent of its young creator, El Mahi, 37 years old, head chef at the Das Badl restaurant in Trentino – Alto Adige. The rapid growth of Foodqood’s social profiles is driven in particular by its fast and easy Italian and international recipes, illustrated in short dynamic videos, which are also available in English.

The acquisition has given a decisive boost to Giallozafferano’s position on TikTok and its international expansion. 

Giallozafferano was the first Italian food media brand to target TikTok – where it now has more than 2 million fans on three profiles – as a fundamental move to reach the new generations, experiment with new styles and collaborate with the top emerging talents in Italian cooking.

Meanwhile, at the beginning of the year, Giallozafferano successfully launched its international English-language version as a website and on social media, where today the brand has a community of more than 5 million fans on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and TikTok.

«We are delighted to expand and diversify our social media presence with the acquisition of a hugely successful international young profile. The Instagram and TikTok profiles of Foodqood, which from today will be called GZ Foodqood, mean we can count on an overall fanbase on a par with the top world players,» said Andrea Santagata, general manager of Mondadori Media. «Furthermore, our strategic collaboration with young chef Khalid enables us to continue our on-going productive experimentation with new styles, with the focus increasingly on video shorts, a format that already lets us reach 150 million video views a month on social media. The purchase also strengthens our positioning as a Food Talent Factory. Giallozafferano believes in creators as an important ingredient to deliver fresh content and engage Millennials and Generation Z. This is why today Giallozafferano collaborates on a stable basis with over 50 of Italy’s best and most original food creators,» Santagata added.

With its latest acquisition, Giallozafferano continues to attract and select the most exciting talents on the web, a process that began in 2011 when it created the largest Italian food blogging community, attracting growing numbers of top chefs, influencers and creators.

This also enhances branded content opportunities for commercial partners, who, through the Mediamond space concessionaire, can target new audiences with innovative publishing formats, using the factory content of Giallozafferano and the unique team of food creators who work with the brand.