Meredith Aims for the Pet Market with Happy Paws

Well, this is just adorable.

Meredith Corp., the publishers behind the wildly successful Magnolia Journal that has taken over the lifestyle market, is now setting its sights on pet owners.

According to Greg Dool in Folio:, the company’s latest launch is Happy Paws, “aimed at dog and cat owners and created in partnership with Fear Free LLC, the veterinary education platform founded by ‘America’s veterinarian,’ Dr. Marty Becker, one of a number of ‘veterinary and pet professionals’ who will produce content for each issue.”

“Meredith will print 350,000 copies of the premier issue at a cover price of $9.99, compared to 225,000 at $9.99 for the first issue of Hungry Girl and 400,000 at $7.99 for the debut of Magnolia Journal,” Dool writes. “A spokeswoman says a second issue of Happy Paws is slated to drop in mid-October, after which a regular frequency will be determined based on the responses from consumers and advertisers.”

If recent history is any indication, we expect the response will be enthusiastic, to say the least. Meredith seems to understand the secret sauce of the lifestyle magazine, and how much their audience loves the “lean back” experience delivered in high-quality print magazines. If they can do for the pet market what they did for farmhouse style, Happy Paws will be a tail-wagging, face-licking success.

“Citing the growing market for pet products—a $72 billion industry in the U.S. alone in 2018—as well as ‘extremely popular’ pet coverage in Family Circle, People and Real Simple, among others … Meredith says it expects Happy Paws to both resonate with readers and fill a void in the market,” Dool notes.

Meredith understands the true power magazines have to foster deep engagement about topics people care about … and this is exactly what potential ad partners crave. With the massive social footprint they now have through their acquisition of Time Inc. properties a year ago, Meredith is giving the online ad duopoly a serious wake-up call, too. Not only do they have a strong niche, but they also have the social presence for discovery in a market that is all about what makes us happy.

“What sets this magazine apart from all others out there is its focus on inspiring pet owners to provide their pets with their very best lives,” says VP and group publisher Scott Mortimer to Dool. “We take pride that 100 percent of our content is reviewed by board-certified veterinary behaviorists.”

And while this sets them apart with their readers, it’s their overall approach to publishing passion-based content that is creating win after win for the publisher. It’s fantastic to see this kind of excitement around a new title, and we wish them all the best. Look for this one in the newsstand this spring.