Those persistent rumors of Details' imminent demise are finally coming true. In a memo sent to Condé Nast staffers this afternoon, president and soon-to-be CEO Bob Sauerberg announced that the 33-year-old magazine's December 2015/January 2016 issue will be its last. As a result, the magazine's editor in chief of 15 years, Dan Peres, and its publisher and CRO, Drew Schutte, will be leaving the company.
In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Sauerberg said things at Details have "been tough the last few months," despite the fact that both print and digital circulation have been growing. (Single copy sales, however, fell 30 percent in the first half of 2015, per the AAM.) He added, "Consumers love the magazine. It's not fair or right."
In an effort to keep some of Details' luxury fashion advertisers onboard, Condé is planning to expand GQ's fashion-centric spinoff franchise, GQ Style. The semiannual print supplement will increase its printing schedule to four times a year, while a new stand-alone website, GQStyle.com, will launch in early 2016. The current digital staff at Details is expected to transition to GQ Style; in the meantime, Details.com will remain live.
Sauerberg also dropped a bombshell about Self, which has been the subject of closure rumors of its own in recent months. While the magazine is not folding, its sales and marketing teams are being absorbed by sister title Glamour, and staffers will now report to Glamour's publisher and CRO Connie Anne Phillips. Self publisher and CRO Mary Murcko will be leaving Condé Nast.
On the editorial side, Self will remain independent of Glamour and will continue to operate under the leadership of editor in chief Joyce Chang.