When author, blogger and social entrepreneur Vanessa Coppes acquired Belle Magazine, she had a mission to bring more compassion and social relevance to the brand’s content. She recently spoke to Samir “Mr. Magazine” Husni on why she chose to take on an existing brand instead of starting her own.
“I had been working with the previous owners since its inception. We were friends and had connected,” Coppes told Husni in an interview. “And when they decided to sell, I don’t even know what triggered, it was like a kneejerk reaction to jump on the opportunity because I have always been a very creative person and I just felt that maybe this was my time to tell these stories from my perspective. And hopefully help other people see the world as I see it, but not just as I see it, but as my team sees it.”
With the pandemic basically shutting off newsstand sales not long after she took the helm, Coppes says she knew in her gut that a lot had to change for the magazine to stay relevant. She looks at the challenges as a way to operate from love and compassion, to tell the stories that need to be told right now.
“We want to tell stories of people who are doing amazing things, not just here, but in the world. And the support that we’ve received has been great, I have literally cried. I haven’t had to furlough or let go of anyone on my team,” she continued. “That’s a true testament of commitment on one part from each of them, but also love for what they do.”
When asked why they continue to publish in print, Coppes is clear: “It’s what our readers want from us”
“A magazine is a response to human behavior,” she explains.
“Print is important because print makes something permanent,” she continues. “And the acknowledgement that you receive from seeing your stories on a printed page is something that’s quite literally indescribable. It’s like getting to the top of the mountain. Before all of this, my first article in print I literally cried. It became real to me. It just felt like I had gotten to a part of where I wanted to go.”
With this attitude, we expect Bella Magazine to go wherever Coppes’ vision can imagine; we wish her tremendous success on this iteration of a beautiful magazine.