Hudson News gambles on Vegas

Folio: The Magazine for Magazine Management, June 15, 1995

In its latest push beyond the newsstand, Hudson News has inked an agreement with Office Depot to place 76 business and computer magazine titles in the chain's new 45,000 square-foot Las Vegas store. Earlier this year, the North Bergen, New Jersey-based wholesaler began distributing magazines in nearly 20 New York City-area Blockbuster Video outlets.

Sell-through of Hearst, Time Inc., Conde Nast and Meredith titles at the video-store chain has been "phenomenal," says Steve Seto, account manager of Entertainment Periodical Distributors (EPD), the division of Hudson handling these non-traditional outlets. Vanity Fairs April Academy Awards issue had a sell-through of more than 80 percent, selling out entirely in the Larchmont, New York, store. "[This] has indeed been a blockbuster experience," quips Vanity Fair publisher Mitchell B. Fox. "The volume of issues sold was more than double what we expected. We hope to expand this relationship by getting more copies into more stores." Seto says EPD is actively talking with Bed Bath & Beyond and Home Depot about similar deals.