It’s clear that the American magazine industry is extremely different to the UK market. Like us, our female counterparts across the pond have versions of Glamour, Elle, Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, Vogue and many more options for mainstream publications.
However, when it comes to publications on and offline that are aimed at black women, it’s fair to say the African American women are a little more spoilt for choice. They have Essence and Ebony glossies printed monthly, Jet magazine moving online and websites such as Madame Noire and Clutch magazine to satisfy the black female consumer.
While there are a handful of Black British magazines that have stood the test of time, many more have come and gone, but none have quite made their mark as Colures magazine. Hailed at the time as the “black Vogue”, the publication prided itself in bringing readers the highest quality fashion photography, intelligent articles and achieved an international fan base.
So we asked Colures’ former editor Leonie Lodge about some of the hurdles Black British publications face and why so many bite the dust…