It didn’t take a psychic or a crystal ball to predict Jane’s eventual downfall. The magazine cited advertising and circulation problems, with Brandon Holley (editor in chief) and Carlos Lamadrid (publisher) both leaving the company. The rest of the 60 member staff are expected to disperse among Conde Nast’s many publications.
Unfortunately, Jane staffers have already cleared the building, after Brandon Holley spent the morning making phone calls on their behalf. While the August issue will the last to hit the newsstands, the September issue featuring Naomi Watts will never see the light of day.
The biggest blow to the magazine came when Holley took the helm, after founder and editor in chief Jane Pratt left the magazine in September 2005. Pratt created Jane in 1996 after her first creation, Sassy, was purchased by a Los Angeles based company in 1994. Jane left Jane to Brandon Holley, which was most likely the fatal blow that eventually brought Jane to it’s knees.
Jane may be the most missed recently departed magazine, but it’s certainly not the first. Magazines have been folding at warp speed (at least for the publishing world), including Elle Girl, In Style’s teen magazine (what was it called again?), and Cosmo Girl.
