Topshop 214//

If there's any brand on the high street that knows their market down to a tee, it has to be Topshop. The brand manages to maintain a consistent tone of voice throughout not only it's stores and website, but now also a blog and even a 'catazine'. I think their magazine/catalogue - 214 - is a perfect example of how to communicate with consumers, and Topshop appear to have done a good job, with a mix of product, lifestyle and even DIY fashion.

As with Station, we all really liked the matte paper in which the magazine is printed on. Topshop is a youthful, edgy brand, and so it would have been wrong for them to produce a glossy, glamorous magazine. There's also an element of the hand drawn throughout, which I think makes it seem more personal, a little more youthful than type.

The DIY fashion feature adds a feel of individualism, which takes away from the magazine being a mass produced publication, by a nationwide high street chain, which is clever.

Nic.

Inspiration Station//

Station is a magazine I picked up at London Fashion Week last September. Besides enjoying it for its pieces on up and coming designers at LFW, we all really liked the way in which the publication used different types of paper - in particular the use of coloured paper.

I really like the article on the newest British talent, and the layout stood out well because instead of just using black print on coloured paper as many magazines already do, Station chose to print in two colours only - a blue to compliment the paper it was printed on, and a red as an opposing tone to stand out, for titles.

Throughout the magazine they used matte paper in white, cream, blue, pale yellow and grey, and even used graph paper as a background (as seen in the last photograph).

Nic.