In 1970, Jan Goldie launched Dolly Magazine to cater to the young and hip Australians. It was a time of great upheavals as reflected in many aspects of life including fashion, music, and youth culture. The timing was right and the concept was solid. The magazine would enjoy success, winning over its target market and increasing its readership as the decades went on. Fairfax Ltd. Distributed copies around both Australia and New Zealand. After almost two decades of ownership, the company sold it to ACP. Its current owner is the Bauer Media Group, which also publishes all issues.

Target Market

The Sydney-based magazine targets teenage girls between 13 and 17 years of age. It is during this time when they usually develop a sense of self. They also have lots questions which Dolly aims to answer. Everything that interests this demographic is included in the pages like advice columns, celebrity news, fashion tips, and so on. The print edition has more than 400 issues to its credit and boasts of a readership that spans over half a million. Always keen to keep up with the trends, an online companion was also launched with exclusive content for fans. The website is the best source of information on the latest issues before they hit the newsstands.

The Move to Digital

The publishing industry has been suffering from falling sales figures since the boom of the Internet Age. People prefer reading information from their screens — something that they can usually do for free and is more convenient rather than buying newspapers or magazines. Dolly is no exception. Subscriptions rates have fallen although the brand remained popular. More of their readers were simply going online to consume content. After a while, they finally decided to abandon the print editions in favor of the Web. The last print issue came out back in December 2016. All succeeding issues would be published online.

Model Competition

Aside from the magazine itself, Dolly is known for its annual modelling competition. This is a prestigious contest where hundreds of girls apply to earn the top honors. Some of the winners and finalists have gone on to have successful careers in the modelling and entertainment industries. This further solidified the brand’s reputation as a fashion icon in the country. The first time this was held was way back in 1992 but it was stopped in 2002 after some bad press. It was revived in 2012. According to the rules, the contest is open to teenage girls who are local residents. Winners are awarded with a one-year contract with a top modeling agency and get a cover shot for the magazine.