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Conde Nast’s head of business manager in the UK has described the business as becoming a “a luxury publisher for the social media platforms”.
Andrea Latten, who took the role in February after 13 years at the company, including four as head of business manager in Germany, told Press Gazette that the growth of the platforms should be embraced as an opportunity rather than a threat.
Her focus on the publisher of Vogue, GQ, Glamor and other brands is to train “how we can drive digital change as quickly as possible,” she said.
About 60% of revenue for British operations still comes from pressure, she said.
Her goal is to reach 50/50 between printed and digital sales within next year.
Conde NastEditorial proposals in the UK are “very digital already”, said Latten and quoted British Vogue 1.5 million followers on Tiktok and GQVideo shows that are “growing extremely”.
(Read more: What happened when British GQ stopped trying to “feed the algorithm”)
But “we have to make sure that we also tell that story to our customers and make sure we bring the right package for the market,” she added.
Although brands can still buy classic website solutions such as display advertising, they make social media “a large, much of our business”.
Conde Nast ‘Part of’ Platform growth with TikTok partnership
Conde Nast is partner to Tiktok’s Pulse Premiere Programs that run ads immediately after content from selected lifestyle, entertainment and sports publishers to deter brand security problems.
Laten said: “This is something that we very actively strikes our luxury customers, because they are always a little worried about social media, especially if TiktokBecause they say “it is not markedly”, or “we do not know what type of environment our ad pops up”, so they prefer to buy it through us and be present on our TikTok channels because they know it is a brand’s safe environment. “
Second Pulse Premiere Partners includes People Inc (formerly Dotdash Meredith), Hearst Magazines, Buzzfeed, Paramount, NBC Universal, Disney and US Sports Leagues NFL, MLS, MLB and NHL.
“In a way, we have become a luxury publisher for the social media platforms,” Laten said.
“I mean, you can see it in two ways. You can see as” Oh my God, these platforms come for us, and they take so much market share “, or you are” okay, let’s be part of that trip and let’s see how we can actually produce good content for these platforms and see how we can make money on it and sell it to our partners “.”
Laten noted that digital advertising budgets have been shifted towards Google, Facebook and Instagram owner Meta and Tiktok, which means the platforms Take over half of the British advertising market.
She said that the Pulse premiere therefore “gives us an opportunity to sell to Tiktok and just make sure that a part of the business is at least invested in the social media platforms … so I think it is really about, how can we be part of this and how can we make sure that we tell our story and that we have our brands present in that world.
“When you look at digital budgets, you see a transition from classic viewing brand -content, etc. towards the digital pure players, so social media or Google, so meta, tiktok or Google is basically 75% of the market. And then the rest of the digital expenditure is divided between several hundred different publishers or opportunities where you can spend your money.
“So I feel that we should be part of these 75% and just make sure we offer an editorial product that is interesting to consumers. We build the right audience on social media and we can make money on them.”
Conde Nast also has a brand content product for Instagram that allows brands to communicate through the Instagram stories about brands like Vogue.
Conde Nast said the laten led a 26% year to year’s increase in social video revenue Last year in the German company run by beauty, fashion and travel categories.
Despite the emphasis on digital and social media, the latter said that pressure remains “incredibly valuable to the brand building”.
Having strong brands means “you can make money on it well on other channels,” she explained, leaving that she has thought of them not only as printing products but as “door opener to new platforms, new business models”.
The brands also mean that people are more likely to consume advertising: Latten said that A/B testing has taken place and looking at the effect of brand content without Conde Nast brands being attached and saying that this “will really help us get even more market share from social media”.
Citing partners like Nike, M&S and Louis Vuitton, Latten Continued: “All of them like to tell a co-branded story, because they like to associate themselves with the values of a fire like VOGUE OR GQ or Tatler, they, Housen, House, House. These Brands Play Such a Significant Role in the individual Ecosystem that very, very Few partners out there would be like ‘oh, I would not like to be associated with three brands. So I really feel that this is an added value.
“It is also as consumers, especially Gen Z, want to perceive to advertise today. I don’t think they just want it in your face, who, buy these new Lululemon -Leggings. They want to see someone tell the story …”
Fashion revenue “hard” but swinging to high street and in love
Some industries that work with Conde Nast are currently in a stronger position than others: Latten noted that fashion, especially for luxury brands, is “difficult” due to price increases in recent years that have led to a reduction in consumers. For example, Chanel’s revenue decreased by 4% in 2024.
Latten was hopeful that fashion would pick up after the September show, especially since many of the luxurious fashion houses have hired new designers.
But in the meantime, Conde focuses on the industries that are doing well, including beauty, all related to mental well -being and luxury travel, Latten said. Conde Nast’s commercial team is set up by the industry rather than individual brands.
“Conde Nast Traveler performs really well. It’s one of our best performing brands, because people will still travel and spend a lot of time traveling, especially after Covid. But they can cut down the handbag. Travel is the real experiences: that’s what we try to capitalize on.”
The laten also quoted the signing of two major non-endemic partnerships with Google and Ebay, the latter of which leans to sustainability and the market sales market that flourishes as a higher fashion struggle.
She said this binds well to the vision of British Vogue under Chioma Nadi, which has been editor since October 2023. High Street Brands Like M&S And Lululemon also holds better and invests in partnership.
“This is how we are, let’s say and try to overcome the current fashion crisis – to be more creative with our partnerships.”
Vogue’s Vintage Luxury Sales held in London And New York earlier this year, in collaboration with Ebay, took this strategy to personal events.
British Vogue also launched its First two-day wellness retreat In Cotswolds in June, something that will now be rolled out to other markets will be rolled. Latten said it “helped us form a new story for Vogue, because Vogue is mainly fashion, but it is also wellness”.
She added that it is “really exciting for us and find new ways to also create experiences around our brands. It doesn’t always have to be a fantastic fashion party.”
Two Conde Nast titles in the UK work differently with brands: Wired and Vogue Business have consulting companies as product insights in their respective industries and put together conferences and summits for partners.
Commercial revenue, led by Latten, is the “main revenue driver” for the business, but she noted that consumer revenue such as e-commerce is also a strategic priority. E-commerce revenue was said to increase 80% year by year by utilizing brand’s reputation for making recommendations on fashion products and beauty to hotels.
Conde Nast to End 2025 ‘On a Healthy Level’ In spite of Fashion Entry
All in all, Laten said, Conde Nast in the UK is currently in 2024, a “very good result, given that 2024 was definitely better than 2025. So we definitely cannot complain.
“We also see that when our customers have budget cuts, we are definitely the last publications from which they lower their budgets, which is something we are very proud of, because we feel that there is a lot of loyalty and long -term partnerships between us and our partners.”
Latten said she is “hopeful” for the fourth quarter because of the potential turnaround on fashion after the September show and because Christmas can be “full of surprises”.
She added that the business has major events that are set up for the fourth quarter including Glamour’s Women of the Year Awards and GQ’s men of the year.
“The sponsorship is really healthy,” the latte said. “They look really good, especially for the men of the year. We are already in a very, very good place.
“So I think that with all our new social products in place, with the excitement of these events, with the printed publications that are going strong, I think we will end the year at a healthy level.”
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