9. Elle
Circulation: 1,103,163 – first half of 2016
Readers-per-Copy: 4.9
Readership: 5,405,500 (estimated)
Origin: France
Elle ranks 9th in our list of the most popular fashion magazines in the world. Elle (meaning “she”, or “her”, in French) was founded in 1945 by journalistic power couple Pierre Lazareff and Hélène Gordon, and covered mostly fashion. It was a total success, and by the ’60s it was said to dictate fashion, rather than follow it. During the ’80s it hit some bumps on the road, but the solution came with international publications. It now has 43 issues and is sold in over 60 countries.
Here is an article on Elle’s origins.
