Condé Nast Japan has pulled the plug on Vogue Hommes Japan as it shifts its resources to a launch a Japanese version of GQ Style, a title that already exists in several other countries including the United Kingdom, Russia and China.
The September issue of Vogue Hommes Japan is the last for the title, which was published twice a year. Japan’s GQ Style will bow in March as a supplement to GQ Japan’s May issue. The plan is to launch GQ Style as a semiannual standalone entity in September. Masafumi Suzuki, the current editor of GQ Japan, will oversee the publication.
Jun Kitada, president of Condé Nast Japan, said the company has had “considerable success” with Vogue Hommes Japan, a magazine it launched in September of 2008.
The edgy magazine’s debut issue featured a 20-page spread by Hedi Slimane posing the question, “Who is the Model Man?” Two years ago, it generated attention for running a Nick Knight shoot featuring Lady Gaga as her male alter ego, a Sicilian grease-stained mechanic named Jo Calderone. Nicola Formichetti, Vogue Hommes Japan’s fashion director, styled the Gaga spread.
“We intend to make maximum use of the experience gained in producing [Vogue Hommes Japan] by pouring this experience into ‘GQ Style’ to ensure the ongoing development of a stylish fashion magazine that fits perfectly into the Japanese men’s market,” Kitada said.