Press
handbag.com Rewrites the Rules with Massive Re-launch
Today top women’s website www.handbag.com unveils a dazzling new identity. At a time of change in the online publishing industry, this comprehensive re-launch aims to cement www.handbag.com ’s position as the number one online destination for women’s fashion, beauty tips and celebrity gossip.
A different look…
The re-design is built around images, showcasing anything from a red-carpet shot of Angelina Jolie to a gallery of the latest Prada bags to an advertising image with the highest quality production values. Video will play an increasingly important role, showing catwalk footage, styling at shoots, interviews with key figures and more.
A different role for the user…
By introducing Web 2.0 functionality, www.handbag.com has combined two of its traditional strengths: strong editorial and vibrant social networks. Now the 1.5 million users are being drawn right into the heart of the site.
The site will host “handbaggers” blogs, providing each individual with the chance to speak directly to a huge audience of like-minded handbaggers.
Each feature or gallery will invite feedback, so that handbaggers can add their own opinions, experience and advice. Editors in turn will incorporate favourite comments into the editorial.
A new feature called “My Handbag” provides a space for handbaggers to create their own profiles, keep videos and RSS feeds and drag-and-drop favourite images.
A different way to navigate…
Instead of relying on fixed, editorially-created routes through the site, the new www.handbag.com generates connections on each page that are based around the content of that page. These links cater directly to the readers’ original topic of interest, as well as leading them on a varied journey through channels they might not otherwise have visited.
Natasha Aitken, Editor of www.handbag.com , said: “Today’s re-launch of www.handbag.com brings a new edge to online publishing for women in the UK. We will be unique in offering an already established community the opportunity to place their thoughts and opinion right alongside the editorial they love, within an absolutely stunning new design. It’s a very exciting time.”
For further information please contact:
Kate Taylor
Kate.taylor@hearstdigital.co.uk
07866 853 401
About handbag
handbag was the first dedicated women’s lifestyle website to launch in the UK, and is now the market leader with over 1.5 million unique readers every month.
handbag is a stylish, glamorous, trusted and informative editorial title providing the inside track for busy women online on everyday important issues like relationships, health, careers and beauty. With the luxury look of a glossy and the lightening reactions of a daily, handbag offers a breadth of coverage from expert writers, establishing a powerful reputation as the leader in a crowded field.
Launched in 1999, the title was acquired by the National Magazine Co. in October 2006 alongside its subsidiary sites getlippy.com, aimed at 18- to 30-year-old women, allaboutyou.com for women aged over 35 and gomamatoday.com, a pregnancy and birth site. handbag is part of the company’s Hearst digital network.
About The Hearst digital Network
The Hearst digital Network, a division of National Magazines, publishes the following websites: www.handbag.com, www.netdoctor.co.uk, www.getlippy.com, www.allaboutyou.com, www.babyexpert.co.uk, www.cosmopolitan.co.uk, www.prima.co.uk, www.goodhousekeeping.co.uk, www.youandyourwedding.co.uk, www.countryliving.co.uk, www.menshealth.co.uk, www.runnersworld.co.uk
About The National Magazine Company
The National Magazine Company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Hearst Corporation established by William Randolph Hearst in 1910. NatMag publishes 14 consumer titles in the UK: Coast, Company, Cosmopolitan, Cosmopolitan Bride, Country Living, Esquire, Good Housekeeping, Harper’s Bazaar, House Beautiful, Prima, Prima Baby, SHE, You & Your Wedding, and Zest. The group publishes a further two magazines, Men’s Health and Runner’s World, through a joint venture known as NatMag Rodale and three large scale weeklies, Best , Reveal and Real People through a joint venture known as ACP-NatMag.