Fashion magazines: China edition. A must-read.

As a Hong Kong fashionista, one cannot miss the chance to buy the Chinese edition of global fashion magazines. Our Hong Kong edition is a must-read too, of course, but we often tend to forget about the puissance of the country at our doorstep. Magazines such as Vogue, Elle, L'Officiel or Bazaar, have made of the Mainland their top-one priority. It is no wonder: CLSA Asia-Pacific forecasts Chinese consumers will buy 45% of the world's luxury goods by 2020, making luxury brands more than willing to spend on advertising in the Chinese luxury publications. A recent report by Hurun Research Institute claims that 1 out of every 1,300 people in Mainland China are millionaires (have more than 1 million euros worth of assets), and the obsession of China's newly rich with high-end fashion and luxury brands is well known to all. With a population of over 1.3 billion, this makes almost 1 million Chinese millionaires!

These fashion magazines in China have no trouble in getting revenue from advertising, which makes it not hard to guess why recently Chinese editions have been producing the best fashion photoshoots, shooting with the top Chinese and international models in the European fashion capitals, hiring the most renowned photographers, and coming up with a result that is envied by their sister titles worldwide. Because these magazines' concern is not funding but market reach, all they want is for people to actually read their magazine. The logic is simple: the more people reads a magazine, the more money brands will be willing to pay to advertise in it.This has resulted in a price war frenzy with high-quality issues priced as low as RMB10.

I recommend spending a day per month in the Mainland, buying magazines, shopping and indulging yourselves in never-ending massages, all for less than you can imagine!

In the picture, Elle China September 2012 edition, priced at RMB10. Elle China is now published by-monthly.