Life & Style vs. Star: IT'S WAR!

This is truely an editor’s worst nightmare.

You work an entire week on your cover and wake-up to discover that one of your competitors has virtually the same cover.

Plus, the topic isn’t strong to begin with!

Both Life & Style and Star Magazine feature Hollywood kids.

So, who did it better?

First let’s review New Jersey’s Life & Style:

• The mag features four of “Hollywood’s cutest kids” plus d-listers Tori Spelling & Trista/Ryan inset with their new babies. (I’ve seen both babies – so not blown away by the insets.)
• My immediate reaction to Life & Style is that I had NO IDEA who the two kids were on the right until I saw the names.
• Even Shiloh was a bit unrecognizable for some reason.

And from NYC, Star Magazine:

• Star takes a bit of a different approach. It finds two pictures that are both recognizable of Shiloh and Suri – but it goes with a slightly bitchy line “Little Princesses.”
• They also make it a battle between the two kids – which is entertaining.
• Not sure if I would have led the battle off with Shiloh’s “hand-me-downs” since the headline is Little Princesses. That threw me off.

Bottom Line: Both are weak. The competition this week from In Touch, People, OK will be too much for both Star and Life & Style.