when did last vw trends issue come out?

[vulgaris]

last time I bought one was 1997

[bugnut68]

Last issue was March or April '05, if I recall correctly?

[Stephan S]

March 2005

[Lids]

http://www.michaelliddle.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/VW%20trends/VW_Trends.htm

[empicolector]

nice colection mike

[Bewitched666]

Why did they stop?

[louisb]

Not enough revenue which was directly related to lousy sales. (And that could be attributed to poor writing and leadership) When Kafer Dave left it was pretty much all down hill. (Who I don't think has found this forum yet.)

--louis

[deano]

Not enough revenue which was directly related to lousy sales. (And that could be attributed to poor writing and leadership) When Kafer Dave left it was pretty much all down hill. (Who I don't think has found this forum yet.)

--louis

Yes, that's true. Ad pages dropped below 20, and newsstand sales dropped well, well below 10,000. The number of subs was well padded and did not relate to their true numbers.

[John Rayburn]

I have to take issue with the writing comment. Stephan's contribution with his articles and photography was turning the magazine way around. The magazine was evolving into a real winner thanks to him and I think they pulled the plug prematurely.

[nicolas]

well, beerpoints for you John, me too i was a reader off VWtrends and i liked it very much. nice clean features, but maybe not 'daring' enough or not what everybody was talking about at the time. i have the last years and was buying that mag from 2001 when i got my fastback. and i haven't found any mag that had the same spirit... they stopped it too soon, as it was developing a new standard and doing a great job with the yearly dynoday and coverage off some nice cars, callook or not.

[louisb]

I have to take issue with the writing comment. Stephan's contribution with his articles and photography was turning the magazine way around. The magazine was evolving into a real winner thanks to him and I think they pulled the plug prematurely.

True, Stephan's articles and Henry de Kupers' (sp?) photos were a bright spot in an otherwise dismal magazine.

--louis

[Donny B.]

I liked Trends because they let me write for them and I enjoyed seeing my own words in the mag.  I'm not in a league with the others, but it sure did wonders for my ego.

[Rennsurfer]

I used to really like that mag. I bought them from '79 till '85. I forget the gal's name that worked there, but any time my car, name, or club was mentioned/shown in an issue, she'd mail me a few copies. That was a class act. I'd give 'em out to club members and family. It was a different time.

[Prowagen]

Was a shame for trends to go i was a subscriber for a few years and enjoyed it.
I think one word sums up the problem
PRIMEDIA
Look at their other titiles and if you read other US mages like DRAG/D sport it seems all is not well with primedia and they get through alot of staff.

[Bewitched666]

vw trends is what got me into vw's,my first 1679 came outta one of the first issues i bought.
Sad that they arent here nomore.

But i have hot vw's now again after some time,cool mag too

[louisb]

I like HVWs but I wish there was another US based VW mag. Competition is always good to keep an industry from becoming stagnant. There have been a few attempts but none of them last.

--louis

[bugnut68]

x2 to John Rayburn's post.  Stephan's work was awesome in Trends.  There were some things about the magazine I didn't care for, like Lois Grace's somewhat offbeat editorial columns, but I think the magazine was trying to reach as broad a spectrum of readers as possible.  I had my own issues with Ryan Price, but I wouldn't be so quick to say I could run a magazine any better myself.

[.]

Strangely, their website is still up !

http://www.vwtrendsweb.com/

[Stephan S]

Not enough revenue which was directly related to lousy sales. (And that could be attributed to poor writing and leadership) When Kafer Dave left it was pretty much all down hill. (Who I don't think has found this forum yet.)

--louis

Yes, that's true. Ad pages dropped below 20, and newsstand sales dropped well, well below 10,000. The number of subs was well padded and did not relate to their true numbers.

Dean is correct in his statement! Ad pages dropped to an alarming level; then again, Primedia had a strange policy... VWTrends' Advertising Manager did not work solely for Trends, but for two other magazines at the same time. How could he be efficient and productive? Trends also didn't have the ad revenue of the Sand/Off Road market either, since they chose not to feature any sand buggies, etc.

Newsstand sales dropped indeed too - it seems that many people I knew chose to subscribe to the magazine, rather than buy it at the store. Why shouldn't they, considering the ridiculously low price of a 1-year or 2-year subscription? Primedia didn't make any money on subscriptions, that's for sure... But it allowed them to show potential advertisers some enticing sales numbers.

I certainly did not agree with some of the editorial decisions chosen by the Editor of the time. But in truth, this wasn't the magazine's main problem. Primedia simply looked at the bottom line ($), and at the end of the day, Trends just didn't bring enough revenue. Primedia publishes hundreds of magazines; so pulling the plug didn't seem to be a heartbreaking decision for the men in suits - even though the magazine first appeared on the market in '77.

Oh, by the way, thanks for the nice comments, guys...

[nicolas]

Oh, by the way, thanks for the nice comments, guys...

hey, i am still happy as i can still look at the nice shots you make in other magazines.

[Stephan S]

Oh, by the way, thanks for the nice comments, guys...

hey, i am still happy as i can still look at the nice shots you make in other magazines.

Thanks!