I restarted this conversation here since it deserves a thread all its' own :-) This thread started as a response to "Why have plus size magazines folded" as well as "Advertising in AmaZe magazine." We look forward to hearing your feedback!

Valery ~


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Thanks for the feedback Divas :-) It is great and as always, we adore your voice! It has really been an amazing experience talking with all of you (in person, via phone, email and the boards) about what you like, what you want, what you need and what you would like to see changed.

Before I ask the tough question, I will preface it with these 2 thoughts...

** Thought 1 **
Right now we are doing a quick survey on the boards about what you think is the TOP reason why plus size magazines like MODE, BBW, GRACE and RADIANCE ceased publication. As of this writing, 50% of you feel it is because of, "A lack of support from the advertisers."

** Thought 1 **
In order to prove to advertisers that our curvy community in fact wants a magazine dedicated to curves, they need to see measureable results -- for AmaZe magazine online, this amounts to clickthroughs -- when they do not see the clickthroughs, they take this as a direct message from you, the curvy community, that you are not interested in a magazine and therefore it is not worth their support -- remember, advertisers are looking for measurable results in order to continue supporting a magazine.

** The tough question **

The advertisers watched MODE, BBW, Grace and Radiance go under -- they are hesitant (with good reason) to committ to another magazine -- how can we gain their trust and support and send the message that yes, the curvy community wants a magazine?

Thanks for everything and please continue to thrive...

Valery ~

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Valery,

Hello, I have already left information on a different thread - but I really think we need to embrace AmaZe for the excellent mag - it is so positive and vital and it is not often that we beautiful curvy chicks get that support and reinforcement. Please support their advertises and let them know where you saw them advertise. There is enough negative stuff in the world so lets embrace what is positive.

I would like to leave a thought in response to the question. I feel that the some in the world are still ignorant to the true beauty of the plus size individual. (although that attitude is changing) In order to erase that ignorance, (and this is just my personal opinion) 1 step would to be some sort of size acceptance campagine. but this campagine has to include celeberties. most people in tv land arent going to pay attention to a group of people saying accept us. most people will listen to celeberties. such is the case of Mo'nique's show. if a group of unknown individuals tried to sell the same idea to a network, they wouldn't accept it. but in this world and it is quite unfortunate, money talks. another steps is that we as a community have to go out and buy the magazine, or get a subscripton. we have the power to support ourselves there are enough plus sized individuals in the world to keep the magazine going. tell a friend to tell a friend to buy the magazine. To help a magazine survive i believe that it also has to have celeberty backing, then it may survive. Advertising, and helping others to understand, we are not selling being plus sized, but the reality is that we exist and there needs to be a place for us. Again this is strictly my opinion. thanks for listening

This is where i think the problem comes from lack of support in the plus-size community, meaning the women that these magazines are geared towards.
When all those magazines were around, the plus-size acceptence movement wasn't even really around. There wasn't really any of this be proud of your size feeling.
A lot of women who are plus-size aren't like most of us who are proud. In fact sadly most of them feel ashamed and worthless. That stems from the messages and comments made about plus-size people on tv. Take Oprah for example, before she lost her weight, she was all about accepting yourself as you are. Then after she lost weight, she was all about people losing weight and reinforcing that thin is always in.
And if you have a woman with poor self-esteem; who wants to blend into the crowd so no one notices that she is plus-size, she is NOT going to read nor buy a magazine geared towards someone who is plus-size.

My fiance's mother is a perfect example of this. She doesn't take pride in herself, doesn't do her hair, no makeup, doesn't get her nails done. Nothing. She just wakes up, rolls out of bed, puts on a housedress and she's set for the day.
She doesn't feel beautiful, doesn't think she is beautiful therefore she doesn't take pride in herself. She only shops at Wal-Mart b/c she feels stores like Lane Bryant and Catherines are way too expensive. Even when they have their big end of season blowouts, she feels its too expensive. She doesn't want to spend money to make herself look nice. She doesn't feel she deserves to look nice. She has recently started weight watchers b/c she says that she wants to be attractive to her husband again. Yes ladies, her husband told her to lose weight or they weren't going to have sex ever again.
Which just takes me back to the whole self-esteem issue. Unfortunately, this way of thinking outweighs how the rest of us feel about ourselves.

It's a never ending cycle. The constant jokes from comedians, the media's spin, the diet commercials. It is literally crammed into women's heads that you need to be thin to be sexy, attractive and desireable. Don't tell me it's not that way, b/c when did you ever see a sexy plus-size woman in or on the
cover of Sports Illustrated? Look what it took Carnie Wilson to be published in Playboy. What type of women are used 99.9% of the time in pornography?
Men are visual creatures. They want the prettiest apple in the barrel.
Women are emotional creatures. They see the women on tv being desired and having hot men paw all over them. Women want that feeling of being desired.

Don't mistake what i am saying, i am by no means saying that you have to expose yourself. I am just showing that those types of magazines and videos only reinforce the feelings that thin is sexy. Thin is desireable. Thin is beautiful. Men drool over those pinups. Women want to be desired. See where i am going with this?

Look at the hungryman commercials. They show a hefty guy with his big hungryman meal. He's just an ordinary looking guy. Guess who his wife is? A slender and attractive woman. Look at the ballpark commercials. They show a hefty, ordianry man cramming a hotdog in his mouth. When did you ever see a commercial with a woman thin or not stuffing her face with hotdogs? When did you ever see a woman eating a hungryman meal?

Now flip the channel and you see all these women doing their so called testimonials on how they lost X amount of weight with diet X. Vanity isn't ground into men. Little boys grow up being told by daddy to marry a bikini model. Not to mention that they get into their dad's "special" mags and see tons of nude, beautiful women.

I have no quams about reading my plus-size magazines in public. In fact I have even been known to take issues to the gym and leave them in the magazine rack. I also get asked by tons of women what i am reading. So that makes me think the problems comes from lack of advertising that these magazines are even out there. If women don't know that such a magazine exists, how are they suppose to buy it?

I'm fortunate enough that being plus-size has brought me mainly good things.
Yes i was picked on in school and yes it made me feel crappy. Yes it took me a long time to get over my feelings that i was ugly b/c of my weight. But the joke was on them when they found out that i was modeling and that i had done a runway show and that my look was in demand. That agencies were looking at me as an attractive, exotic looking woman.

True there might be a problem with a lack of advertisers support, but just remember, advertisers are only reflecting society. They didn't pull this way of thinking out of a hat.

Oh my gosh -- thank you a million times over! This is briiliant -- all of you -- As I have alwasy said, the curvy woman is a smart and savvy woman -- you Divas prove that everyday!


My 2 cents...
A lot of our struggle has to do with our feelings about ourselves -- negativity breeds negativity -- when we finally feel that we are valuable, we will put that energy into the world -- and this is where the true change happens...