Sobefit, a healthy lifestyle magazine focusing on South Florida, will launch with a circulation of 40,000 on December 24.
The magazine, which will be published every other month, will be available through subscription and newsstand, and for free at certain distribution sites. Select newsstands and high-end fitness chains will carry the magazine nationwide. In South Florida, the glossy will be distributed at newsstands, gyms, hospitals, doctor’s offices, malls, colleges and other targeted public spaces. The target audience is physically active men and women largely between the ages of 18 and 49.
“Our publisher, Marta Montenegro, has spent many years tracking the [publishing] industry,” said Candy Tree, director of marketing for Sobefit. “She really saw an opportunity in the market for a magazine like Sobefit that was devoted to topics of fitness, nutrition, health and sports.”
Tree added that the magazine will primarily market itself through community events, including a launch party at the Four Seasons Miami on October 14. Sobefit is scheduled to participate in 40 to 50 events, including golf tournaments, 5K runs and culinary events, in 2009. The magazine will also create its own branded events, such as “Sobefit Gym Days” and “Sobefit Mall Days.”
“We will have a pretty strong presence at everything to do with South Florida nutrition and health,” Tree said.
On January 1, the magazine will launch a year-long contest to find “the fittest man and woman in South Florida.” The contest, designed to drive people to register on the Web site, will be promoted in the magazine. When the finalist pool is narrowed down to six, another promotional blitz will launch to get people to vote online. Winners will be featured on the December cover of the magazine and will attend a gala dinner in their honors.
Tree added that the Sobefit marketing plan also includes outdoor, guerilla and radio efforts. The magazine’s Web site will eventually add Web 2.0 capabilities for better audience engagement.
