Hottest Launches

Eva Dillon, VP/publisher, COOKIE Magazine; and Pilar Guzman, editor-in-chief:

1. What do you consider the single most important achievement your magazine has accomplished in today's marketplace?

The parenting category is well served by magazines that provide the ABC's of child rearing. Cookie is the first parenting magazine that speaks to the woman within the mother as a lifestyle magazine for modern parents that offers inspiration and information in the areas of fashion, travel, and home as well as health/beauty, and development as they pertain to families.

2. Looking back at your history, what was the most important hurdle you were able to overcome?

The most important hurdle we overcame was breaking the perceptions in the advertising community that a family magazine had to be limited to parenting issues for new mothers, and that sophisticated mothers were being served by existing lifestyle magazines. Because it never existed before, some advertisers challenged the notion that a new magazine could serve a much needed purpose for mothers wanting to be recognized as persons with interests not only in their children but in style, design, travel, and home décor that change significantly when children come along but that they maintain nonetheless. Essentially, we convinced the community that being a good parent and maintaining one1s sense of style are not mutually exclusive, and that a magazine that reflects this sensibility would be very successful.

3. What was the biggest pleasant surprise?

The biggest pleasant surprise was that not only did the advertising community embrace the magazine, but advertisers from opposite ends of the spectrum -- mass and class -- are co-existing within the pages. We are carrying Gucci Eyewear and Huggies Diapers. Porsche and Playtex Bottles. Burberry and Honey Maid Graham Crackers. Tiffany and Ikea. Since its launch, Cookie has attracted 60 advertisers of a more upscale nature that have never advertised in a parenting magazine before... Ralph Lauren, Cartier, Elie Tahari, David Yurman, Lexus, Land Rover, Roberto Cavalli and Sephora, to name just a few.

From an editorial standpoint we were thrilled to find that our mission of speaking to the needs of the person beyond the parent has such resonance for so many women. We believe that mom should be able to maintain her sense of style, adventure and intellectual curiosity even though she has kids.

4. What is the biggest challenge you are facing today?

Since there is no other lifestyle magazine for parents that incorporates fashion, travel, home, health, finance, beauty, etc., our greatest challenge is fitting all that our readers are asking us to cover within the number of edit pages allotted in the budget.

5. Imagine you have a magic wand, and you can strike the magazine and make it a human being. Describe that human being.

If this magazine were a person, she would be a mom that1s as conscientious and well- informed as she is stylish and fun. She wants only the best information and resources for her family, but is also willing to do things not necessarily by the book. Whether she works or stays at home, she puts her family first, but also takes care of herself and her relationship. She believes that a happy mom makes way for a happy child. She is confident, open, and creative with a nod to tradition in her approach to all areas of her life. Just like she doesn1t dress herself or her child in any one particular brand or style of clothing (she might pair a Ralph Lauren coat with a pair of pants from H&M), she doesn1t affiliate exclusively with any one particular school of childrearing (Dr. Sears vs. Dr. Spock; family bed vs. the Ferber sleep-training method). She is also interested in maintaining a sense of style in all areas of her life.

6. The number of new magazine launches has been on a steady increase. What advice to you offer to someone wanting to start a new magazine?

From the editorial perspective, our advice is to make sure that you are in fact filling a void in the market. One quickly learns whether their idea has resonance. The second is to package things in such a way that is as easy for readers to digest and really use as it is inspiring. On the business side, the most important goal is to sell the idea. The words are simple but the execution is not. You have to brand your product, prove the need, create a desire and stand out from the clutter. The clarity and persuasiveness of your message makes or breaks your entire project.

7. Finish this sentence: In 2010, your magazine will be...

an adjective. "Cookie" will be used to describe a certain way of family life, one that connotes celebration, and an artful sense of whimsy. "We want to go on a Cookie vacation." We are interested in giving moms permission to maintain their sense of style, adventure, and interests, while raising healthy happy kids. In addition to providing inspiration and information for parents, our mission is to remind them that taking care of themselves their relationships, their minds, their bodies, their living spaces is by no means mutually exclusive with being a good parent.