The Sunday Star will relaunch with a new look on Jan. 16. The paper will still be a broadsheet, but will have more of a magazine feel, with more feature stories. It will be full colour throughout, and have four sections: a front section that includes news, features, opinion pieces and finance, an analysis section called ‘Ideas,’ a sports section called ‘The Score’ and a section called ‘Buzz’ that will have arts, entertainment and lifestyle pieces. The front page of the new paper will have a poster-front image, and the design of the paper will be updated throughout. Giles Gherson, editor in chief of the Star, says this type of Sunday paper is a first for North America, and will have the feel of British papers like The Sunday Times, The Sunday Telegraph and The Observer.
The Star created a task force about a year ago to look at why the Sunday edition was underperforming compared to the rest of the week’s editions. ‘The Sunday paper never had the circulation of Saturday and other days,’ says Gherson. ‘Although it’s not a small circulation, questions were asked why we aren’t doing better.’
He says this is an opportunity for the Star to re-brand its editorial to be more inclusive of different cultural communities and younger readers. Greg Lowen, VP of strategic planning, marketing and new ventures, says that Sundays have less competition from other media, so it’s a perfect opportunity for advertisers to get their message across without a lot of clutter. He predicts that the relaunch will expand advertising in categories including packaged goods and pharmaceuticals, as these are advertisers who might appreciate the paper’s magazine-like feel.
