Foodies boss dishes the news on the exciting development in Q&A with hair and beauty PR experts
AS INSTAGRAMMING and scrolling feeds dominate the internet, magazines face challenging times in the battle to attract buyers and readers.
Yet for many of us, the attraction of losing ourselves in the pages of a glossy lifestyle title is still one of life’s greatest pleasures.
With nearly a decade at the helm of Foodies, Scotland’s favourite food and drink magazine, founder and managing director Sue Hitchen has managed to straddle two worlds – with both thriving print magazine and an outstanding digital presence.
Not content with dominating the food and drink scene, Sue is now about to introduce a brand new health and beauty segment. We caught up with her to find out how breaking into new territory will be a beautiful thing for the popular title…
Q – You have been at Foodies for 9 years now – it’s been quite a journey, hasn’t it?
A – While Scottish cuisine now has its rightful place on the world culinary stage and Scotland boasts some fabulous restaurants, this wasn’t really the case when I first started Foodies Magazine nearly a decade ago. Scottish produce has always been fantastic but it wasn’t as well respected as it should have been, and I wanted to really promote and celebrate the excellent food I knew was on offer here.
Q – What do you think makes the magazine such a success?
A – I think that sticking to our ethos of celebrating the rich and vibrant Scottish food and drink scene is what has made Foodies successful over the years. We focus on local, independent producers and have formed close relationships with Michelin-starred and top local chefs to make sure we offer our readers recipes, news, and content that isn’t only engaging – and delicious! – but close to home and relevant to them.
Q – Why the leap from food and drink to health and beauty?
A – We’ve always included a small nod to health and beauty in the magazine, but recent wellness trends got us thinking that it was time to pay a bit more attention to this section. The relationship between food and beauty/health has really been in the spotlight this year, so expanding this section felt like a natural extension.
Q – When will this be launching and what can readers expect?
A – We are expanding our health & beauty segment from the December issue onwards, where we’ll be looking at Christmas party beauty treatments. We relaunched our website, foodies.co.uk, this year with a brand new look and style, and all of our print content, as well as exclusive digital content, is displayed there.
Q – Do you think the media environment has changed when it comes to magazines – are they still a popular medium for beauty news since the rise of social media?
A – As we’re a free monthly glossy, we are distributed throughout Edinburgh and Glasgow in top bars, restaurants and cafes, as well as on the Edinburgh Trams. Our readers love picking up hard copies of the magazine when they’re out and about in the city.
Q – What kind of stories are you hoping for from health and beauty businesses?
A – We’re looking to cover new treatments and products, new trends in the industry, and anything with a consumer interest angle.
Q- What are your personal beauty essentials (go to salon, favourite product)?
A – I’m a loyal customer at Vincent Bell Hairdressing – I wouldn’t trust anyone else!
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