Francophone papers strut their stuff - new look for three Belgian titles

Posted by Soraya Kishtwari on May 7, 2009 at 4:41 PM

In the space of one week, three of Belgium's "quality" newspapers will have undergone a total design overhaul. On Tuesday, Le Soir (published by Rossel) unveiled its new look, followed on Wednesday by La Libre Belgique, part of the IPM portfolio. Saturday will see the anticipated launch of L'Echo, the country's business newspaper, whose most noticeable change will come in the choice of its new choice of colour, salmon pink, bearing a striking resemblance to the UK's Financial Times.

Le Soir, for instance, has decided to give more prominence to its analysis articles. "It is by no means a coincidence that the [country's] three "quality" newspapers have decided to act," said Daniel Van Wylick, director general of the Soir, adding that their efforts "demonstrated the dynamism of the Francophone press in Belgium."

Partly in response to the changing market and spurred on by some good, old-fashioned competition, the three titles have worked on their content as well as their image, with the Soir having made efforts to differentiate its weekly publication from its weekend edition. In operative terms, the newspaper has also opted for newsroom integration, combining both its print and digital setups.

For managing director of IPM, François le Hodey, the global downturn, he insists, was not the main reason for the changes, even though he concedes that it does place greater pressure on achieving the desired results. In any case, a need to implement cost-cutting measures gave La Libre Belgique an opportunity to reinvent itself. "We had always envisioned a more compact, quality newspaper that was full of colour and I'm convinced if we insist on quality our efforts will be rewarded: we need to make people want to pay 1 EUR or 1.5 EUR on Saturdays to read us," said le Hodey. He went on to use the analogy of the bicycle and its comeback as a desirable and fashionable accessory before asking: "Why can't the same outcome befall the quality press?"

Like its rivals, l'Echo also believes that placing greater emphasis on quality is key: "The idea is to capitalise on the crisis that we're currently experiencing," said editor-in-chief, Martine Maelschalk. Given the newspaper's focus on business affairs, economics and politics, its main audience comprises entrepreneurs, managers, politicians and investors, who increasingly look for in-depth and sophisticated financial data and analyses, which the paper is proud to provide. The decision to print in salmon-pink illustrates how eager the publication is to align itself with the likes of the Financial Times. "It gives us an edge," said Maelschalk, "but it also puts us under an enormous amount of pressure, as we're basically comparing ourselves to the best!"

Earlier in the year sports paper DH Les Sports was also revamped, providing further evidence of the Belgian press' commitment to changing with the times. Belgium's titles, of course, are not the only ones to focus their attention on improving their design and content, which some say is vital if newspapers plan to have a long and healthy future. Certainly, some studies indicate these are key aspects in attracting younger readers, in particular. Other recent revamps include English language newspaper Moscow News and Chilean regional paper El Mercurio de Antofagasta.

Whilst the consequences of these changes will not be known for some time, Belgium's papers are to be applauded for their unique approach to dealing with the current economic situation. If the recession poses - at the very least - a serious problem to the newspaper industry, these newspapers are turning the problem not just into a challenge but, with time, also a valuable opportunity for reinvention.

Sources: Le Soir.be