As mass publishing houses continue to play musical chairs, a new independent magazine has emerged in New York. Titled Family Style, the publication focuses on niche pursuits, and bills itself as "the intersection of food and culture." The name takes from an American phrase but Chinese concept, referring to the shared act of eating communally and with shared plates. "Each issue is a fantasy dinner party of the most interesting people across fashion, art, and design from around the world," explains the publication’s founder Joshua Glass. Glass’ resume includes both mass and indie titles, from The New York Post and The New York Times to CR Fashion Book, which launched CR China a few years ago, and Hypebeast, which is based in Hong Kong. With a host of veteran editors and cultural influencers including Stefano Tonchi — the founding editor of T Magazine: The New York Times Style Magazine, which launched in China soon after, and the longtime editor of W magazine, which spanned W Korea — and friend of the magazine Carol Smith, who most recently served as SVP, Group Publishing Director over Hearst’s luxury brands. Although the magazine is operating between New York and Europe, Family Style has a focus on Asia Pacific, specifically China and Hong Kong, says Glass, because of its rich art and fashion markets. "If you look at art franchises such as Art Basel in Hong Kong or Frieze in Seoul or the countless destination fashion shows across mainland China, it's undeniable," says Glass. "That's why we've appointed two editors in Asia upon launch, former Vogue editor Monica Kim in Seoul and hospitality art director Ron Wan in Hong Kong. We'll be announcing a key editor in Shanghai in the coming weeks." Family Style bills itself as more than a magazine, and much of it is due to this editorial team, who have a collective reach of almost 2 million followers on Instagram. The magazine will be leveraging that key opinion leadership to push out original content that explores creative industries food. It will also act as the hosts for Family Style's ephemeral dinners that will occur around the globe. Attached to key global events such as Shanghai Fashion Week, the magazine will create curated events in collaboration with luxury brand partners for a tailored group of influential people. That is in addition to white label concierge programming for ultra high network individuals. “This is where marketing is going,” says Glass. “Luxury and fashion brands want to position themselves in a streamlined way with the meaningful people at the forefront of culture.” “Family Style is bridging those connections between fashion, art, and design through elevated food content and events,” he adds. “It’s delicious and it’s effective.”
