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Her Paper

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Team TMN chat with Jason Bowman, Sales Director at Black Iris Publishing to find out more about Her Paper, the soon-to-be launched lifestyle newspaper for women…

Tell us a bit about Black Iris Publishing and Her Paper….
Black Iris Publishing was formed in the UAE in 2012, when we began publishing one8one magazine – a lifestyle magazine for students distributed to Virgin Megastores, high schools, universities and higher education institutions across the UAE.

As print media is declining, we wanted to breathe life back into this medium by using augmented reality, combined with e-commerce to allow readers to buy the products they see in print, through a corresponding mobile app. This month we are launching Her Paper, which will be the UAE’s first lifestyle newspaper for women that utilises augmented reality technology.

Tell us about the concept behind Her Paper…
Her Paper will keep readers abreast of the latest lifestyle news whilst allowing them to purchase everything they see or read in the newspaper instantly. The publication runs in tandem with get it – so readers can simply scan an article or advertisement they see, and a video advertisement pops up in the app (if the brands have video adverts for their campaigns), which lists any products/services that are available in a menu. Readers can then click on the product/service that they want to purchase and we will deliver it to their door within 24 hours, if it’s a product. If it’s a service that has been booked – a test drive or cinema ticket, for example – we would then send a confirmation to their email.

What made you decide to launch Her Paper in the Middle East?
Women love to shop, women are online and women are mobile. In this day and age consumers want products and services instantly and we satisfy this demand by delivering products straight to your door, eliminating the need to even leave the comfort of an armchair.

Will Her Paper be available in any other formats?
Her Paper will be available through our app, get it, which will be found on Android and Apple. You will also be able to get Her Paper online.

How do you think the get it mobile app will enhance readers experience?
Imagine seeing a product or service in a newspaper and thinking to yourself; I want to buy that, now! get it allows you to do just that, regardless of whether the brand is available online. We stock the products in our warehouse and do the deliveries ourselves. If a brand has a video commercial, or wants to offer readers a further digital experience, we can also offer that service through the app.

What do you think makes Her Paper particularly relevant to the MENA community?
We are lucky enough to be spoilt living here in the UAE. We can call local mini-markets to deliver grocery items to our door. Her Paper is just capitalising on this concept, but using mid-to-upmarket consumer products and services.

How will you make HerPaper stand out from other publications available?
Her Paper is the first newspaper available exclusively for women aged between 18 and 45. Combined with the get it app, there is no other product like it in the market.

How can PRs and brands get involved with Her Paper or the get it app?
Simply give me a call on 050 656 1567 or drop me an email on jason@blkiris.com.

Will you be working with one dedicated editorial team, or will there be opportunities for freelancers?
For Her Paper, we are working with a dedicated editorial team, but we are also not adverse to freelancers. 

How do you think HerPaper can be developed in the future?
An Arabic version will be available shortly, the rest has to remain secret…

Five minute focus – Hopscotch

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Team TMN chat with Helen McGuire, Co-Founder and Managing Director at Hopscotch – a new agency looking to change the game for professional women in the MENA region…

Tell us a bit about Hopscotch?
Hopscotch launched in April this year and at the time of launching, it was the first platform to enable and support professional women in finding flexible work to suit their situations.

Where did the concept for Hopscotch originate?
I took maternity leave with my first daughter in 2015 and realised how much talent was being wasted through a lack of opportunities for non-regular work hours. I also know from my own background just how great a need there is for flexible work within businesses. Hopscotch was founded as a way to create a unique solution to these two issues in the region.

What makes Hopscotch unique as a service?
We do not see ourselves as simply a ‘recruitment’ service. We also offer one-on-one coaching and skills workshops that help women re-enter the workforce if they’ve been away for a while.

What do you think makes a company such as Hopscotch particularly relevant to the MENA community?
This region is home to so many women who have either had to leave work due to the maternity laws here, or moved with their husband and perhaps left a successful career behind. We have tapped into that huge talent pool and made it accessible to businesses both large and small, as well as giving these women the opportunity to contribute to the household and kick start their careers again.

How have you marketed Hopscotch since its launch?
We have advertised on two fronts – both in trade/business print and also to our target market of women through magazines such as good. All of our PR and creative work is done in-house, lead by myself and I have experienced a huge interest in comment pieces, features and columns across trade, daily and monthly publications. In addition, we have a very strong social media presence with over 15,000 followers and a solid content strategy across those platforms.

Do you feel that social media has helped your company grow?
Absolutely – it’s essential to be front of mind for both women and business and we have a long-term social media strategy to help with that.

How important do you think it is to encourage working mums in the UAE?
Very! According to the World Bank, GDP would increase by five percent if women played a larger part in the economy here. We have one of the most educated female populations in the world, yet one of the lowest rates of female employment. Hopscotch is changing that.

Can you find candidates for roles within media companies specifically?
With 1000’s of women on our database, who possess a huge array of skills and talents, we don’t specifically provide jobs or candidates for one industry in particular. Having said that, we do cater to a higher percentage of media industry roles than any other, and work with a large number of women who are well suited to these positions.

How can businesses get involved with Hopscotch?
Simply head to hopscotch.ae to register, or email our new Business Director, Jeremy, directly at jeremy@hopscotch.ae.

Did you face any challenges in establishing the company in the UAE?
We are part of a parent company, MCG Group, which is one of the most successful recruitment companies in the Middle East. MCG Group already has an established reputation and clients in this region so, thankfully our set up journey wasn’t too turbulent.

What does the future hold for Hopscotch?
We have seen positive expansion in our first six months by employing an excellent team across both recruitment and new business, and on the training front with our skills workshops in collaboration with HSBC, so we aim to keep on that road to ensure that we can help and support both businesses and women to find the perfect employment solution. Our aim has always been to change the game for both parties in this region, so we have some exciting plans and partnerships on the cards to enable that over the next six months!

Forever Sports Middle East

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Team TMN sit down with Group Commercial Manager of White Fox Media, Matthew McMullan, to talk about the launch of new men’s sports and lifestyle publication, Forever Sports Middle East…

Tell us a bit about Forever Sports Middle East?
Forever Sports Middle East is the region’s only dedicated monthly sports and lifestyle magazine targeting men aged 18-40. Aiming to be ‘The Insider Guide To Sport’, we offer readers a unique glimpse into the mind of the modern global sporting superstar through cutting edge editorial and photography. The magazine also features a blend of technology, fashion and grooming to ensure that we are in tune with our demographic of international citizens living and working around the Middle East.

Tell us about the concept behind Forever Sports Middle East…
Given the huge appetite for sport, both locally and regionally, we saw an opportunity to provide advertisers and agencies with a platform from which to reach the already vast, and still growing, demographic of sports mad men living across the Middle East, who play and watch sport on a regular basis.

What made you decide to launch Forever Sports Middle East?
Basically the lack of anything like Forever Sports in the region. Whilst specialist sports magazines do very well in the UAE, there is nothing monthly on the market to cater for the needs of men who are active, extremely image-conscious, into gadgets and love fashion. Forever Sports Middle East aims to fill that gap with great editorial, which we believe will offer direct advertisers and media agencies the right environment to reach their target audience, through the longevity of a monthly sports and lifestyle magazine. 

What are the main features of the magazine?
Sport is very clearly the main driver, but not the analysis of sport. Our aim is to be ‘The Insider Guide To Sport’ – asking questions and uncovering the personal thoughts and views of sports stars, through engaging and cutting-edge articles. The magazine also features extensive fashion and grooming sections, both of which play a key role in the modern man’s arsenal here in the Middle East, where fitness and body image are vitally important, both socially and professionally. 

Will Forever Sports Middle East be available online, or exclusively as a print publication?
We are working with our partners in the UK to bring the Forever Sports website to the region and we expect this to be concluded in the near future, so more exciting options are ahead for both our readers and advertisers. 

What makes Forever Sports Middle East unique as a publication?
We have followed Haymarket’s business model in the UK. Our success will come from placing our publication where men actually shop for sports equipment – such as retail outlets and superstores – where it’s available on the counters for impulse purchasing, just as we have seen in the UK where Forever Sports is one of the leading men’s magazines in the market. It’s also available in the places our audience actually hangs out, such as sports bars and clubs, as well as at both Dubai International Airport and Etihad First and Business Class lounges.

From an advertiser’s perspective, our in-store model is extremely valuable as it is highly targeted and offers zero wastage. It’s something that we’re delighted to have been able to secure as we won’t be fighting for attention on the newsstand, meaning many more eyeballs on Forever Sports Middle East than on our competitors publications combined, and visibility is the key to our success.

How can PRs get involved with Forever Sports Middle East?
We’d love to hear from anyone looking to engage with our audience, such as advertisers or PR agencies. Given the broad range of content we provide each month, it’s a great opportunity for brands, both directly or indirectly associated with sports, to reach an audience who are active, brand aware, image conscious and have large disposable incomes, mainly spent on themselves. Whilst we will be proactively speaking with PR Agencies, we would also encourage them to get in touch and be a part of the magazine. 

Will you be working with one dedicated editorial team, or will there be opportunities for freelancers?
As with all licensed magazines, we have the option to “pick up” editorial content from sister publications around the world. We already have a great team in place with some amazing contacts in their phones, from professional footballers, cricketers and golfers to boxers and Olympians. That being said, if you have an interest in sports, fashion, technology, music, grooming or fitness and you think you can add something into the mix then drop us a line – as the saying goes, nothing ventured, nothing gained! 

How do you think Forever Sports Middle East can be developed in the future – do you have any plans for expansion?
As it stands, we are available across the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. Plans are currently in place to expand the network to reach Qatar, Bahrain, Oman and Jordan, and these will be finalised in the latter half of 2016/early 2017.

Fashion Weekend

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Team TMN chat with Zahirah Variawa, Managing Director of Think Liquorice, to discuss this week’s Fashion Weekend event at Souk Madinat Jumeirah…

Tell us a bit about Fashion Weekend?
Fashion Weekend is a concept created by Souk Madinat Jumeirah to celebrate fashion in Dubai against the backdrop of the Souk and showcase what the venue has to offer.

Tell us about the concept behind Fashion Weekend …
Souk Madinat Jumeirah has historically been viewed as a destination to visit by tourists or guests from out of town. By working with the management team we were looking for a way to change that perception and showcase the establishment’s many other offerings to not just tourists but with a focus on residents as well. Fashion Weekend is only one of the initiatives that will allow people to see the diverse range of shopping and dining available. We also hope to grow this concept each year alongside the retail spread of the Souk. Fashion Weekend, along with other projects planned for the upcoming months, will open up the Souk to residents through collaborations and events to allow Dubai’s community to rediscover what is on offer. 

What makes this event unique?
Unlike traditional fashion shows, Fashion Weekend takes place in the walkways of the Souk, as opposed to a catwalk. There will be interesting elements that bring the show to life and emphasise key components of the Souk Madinat Jumeirah brand.

Models will be interacting with the live entertainment and the guests as well. The show’s format is designed to make the clothing, as well as the event, a pop up feature during the day. Our focus is not to repeat the standard fashion show format, but rather offer a snapshot show that is fun, interactive and enjoyable without taking away from the other activities you may have planned at the Souk or in the city over the weekend.

How will Fashion Weekend be marketed differently from previous events at Souk Madinat Jumeirah?
The event marketing is focused primarily online. Thursday’s showing is aimed at press, bloggers and invited guests, but still open to the public. Souk Madinat Jumeirah receives great interaction globally across it’s social media pages and we wanted to use these events to build on that. Live feeds, video content and interactive posts before, during and after the event will be the key drivers. Souk Madinat Jumeirah is a lifestyle brand, and with that we want the events to be inclusive and enjoyable for all ages and nationalities.

It’s difficult to compare the marketing of Fashion Weekend to the marketing of previous events as it’s the first time the Souk brand is branching out and hosting events like this under it’s own banner. 

Do you think it’s more difficult marketing Souk Madinat Jumeirah to UAE residents than it is to tourists and, if so, how?
I don’t believe it’s more difficult, it is just different. Tourists generally go looking for iconic locations ­–  everything from the Arabesque architecture, style and traditional stores as well as the retail offerings within the souk. Residents are familiar with the Madinat but, given the many other choices available across the UAE market for shopping and dining, we need to work at reminding them of what’s on offer; and look to create unique experiences such as Fashion Weekend.

Can anyone attend Fashion Weekend?
Yes, it’s an informal ‘pop-up’ show in the walkway outside Costa.

How can media companies get involved in Fashion Weekend?
Easily! We love collaborating and are always open to ideas and partnerships to help build on this concept and others. To get involved, even in next week’s event, just drop the team an email at info@thinkliquorice.com

Could you tell us more about who/what we can expect to see at Fashion Weekend?
Interactive runway shows with warm and friendly models working the walkways, live entertainment with a DJ and sax player as well as a free-to-attend fashion workshop with Kelly Lundberg talking about this season’s trends and how to travel smart while looking fabulous. 

Are you planning to make this an annual event?
Yes. We’re starting small and intend to build on the concept each year.

What can media visitors expect to gain from Fashion Weekend?
Fashion Weekend will allow media and influencers to rediscover the Souk through the medium of fashion. They will not only get a good overview of the retail offering on the models and the runway, but by traveling through the walkways of the food, fashion, gift and signature stores. Through exercises like these we want to open up the souk to the media and remind them that it still is one of the most beautiful shoot locations, event locations and able to offer a unique mix of culture, shopping, dining, entertaining and more. It’s one of the only theatres in the city and the entire team are keen to welcome the media to consider and utilise these spaces. Coupled with the showcase of fashion, it will make for a short and sweet but enjoyable Thursday afternoon out of the office! The media show takes place at 12pm on the Thursday, May 19. 

How do you think Fashion Weekend can/will be developed in the future?
As an agency we always strive to build on everything we do. A concept like Fashion Weekend has endless possibilities for growth, extending into and including the food and beverage sectors, as well as expanding the fashion workshop into an exhibition, panel discussion or series of events – the sky is really the limit. The concept is very malleable at this stage and as we work through the first few seasons I hope it will develop into a calendar highlight and take on a personality of its own.