Maxim, the lad magazine doling out advice and ribald humor that is especially appreciated in military circles, is on the market.
The magazine’s parent company, Alpha Media Group, announced Friday morning that its board of directors had decided to sell or find new investors now because it had “made the successful transition from a magazine property to a multichannel brand.†In a press release, Alpha Media also noted its investors were pleased with how it expanded its reach among 18 to 34-year-old men across media platforms.
“Young men are an elusive target in today’s fragmented media environment, and Maxim has emerged as the leading multiplatform brand with an inherent strength in reaching this key demographic,†Ben Madden, the magazine’s president, said in a statement.
In 2007, Felix Dennis, the British media mogul, sold Maxim, along with Stuff and Blender, to Quadrangle Capital Partners II. In 2009, Quadrangle walked away from its investment and ownership of Maxim was inheited by six private equity firms who were debtors on the deal. During the transition period, Maxim held its total circulation at about 2.5 million, according to the Alliance for Audited Media, and it remained extremely popular with members of the military.
But, like many magazines, its newsstand sales dropped precipitously, to 161,499 in December 2012 from 433,567 in December 2007. Its advertising pages dipped by 22.2 percent between 2012 and 2011, according to the Publisher’s Information Bureau.
Mr. Madden said this potential sale is not prompted by the latest struggles in the magazine world, but the interests of its owners.
“It was never a matter of whether we would be for sale,†he said in an interview. “It’s a matter of when.†He said Maxim’s investors had decided the time had come.
“If the price is not right or the best offer is not found, they will hold,†he added. “We certainly don’t need to sell.â€
