27 March 2025

The art of licensing: How Prisma Media is spreading a uniquely French approach to life around the world through its luxury magazines

“Finding a good license partner is a bit like falling in love,” says Marie-Eva Chopin, Director of Business Development: Luxury and Art de Vivre at Prisma Media, France’s largest digital and print magazine publisher. “It’s a relationship between us and our partners and they have to fall in love with our brands and trust us.

“It’s a case of finding the right person, in the right place and at the right moment. They have to believe in the projects we do and love our print issues. And we have a lot to offer another publisher because our portfolio of magazines is vast.”

Amongst its 40 powerful brands, Prisma Media has a selection of luxury titles, run by a luxury division launched in 2022, that crosses borders particularly effectively.

Ideat, the interior design and architecture magazine, have editions in China, Germany, and the Benelux; lifestyle brand The Good Life (which was recently relaunched) has an Italian version; while children’s fashion and lifestyle quarterly Milk is doing well in the Japanese market.

Prisma Media, which is part of Louis Hachette Group, has done a remarkable job leveraging international licensing to expand the influence of these titles in what is a fast-growing and competitive luxury market. Each magazine spreads the French philosophy of art de vivre (the art of living) – emphasising the enjoyment of life, taking pleasure in the small things and being nonchalantly chic and sophisticated. 

“The French art of living is a concept that represents excellence, elegance and a sense of hospitality,” says Chopin. “It is expressed through key pillars such as gastronomy, fashion, culture, the art of hosting, and everyday refinement, making it highly attractive worldwide. This unique lifestyle is at the heart of Prisma Media’s luxury division, through its iconic magazines that celebrate this heritage and reinterpret it for a global audience.

“Each magazine embodies the French art de vivre. Their strong editorial credibility and expertise make them key partners for brands looking to enhance their image and storytelling globally.

“Their strength also lies in their ability to adapt locally, allowing them to reinterpret French luxury and lifestyle according to different cultural preferences. This flexibility keeps them relevant and desirable worldwide.”

Those who strike up a licensing agreement with Prisma Media get more than just iconic brands. Under the French group’s strategy, partner media groups get access to premium, ready-to-use content and a comprehensive ecosystem, including print, digital and events. It’s bespoke support that allows partners to diversify their revenue streams.

“It’s a very important part of the business – showing partners how to diversify our brand,” says Chopin. “We are doing this with all the luxury brands, and we share all our projects with our partners. For instance, Ideat is launching a Think Tank and Milk is teaming up with Bonton for a unique experiential pop-up in Paris. So, we have a lot of business advice to share with partners.”

A change in style

The arrival of Prisma Media’s luxury division comes at a time when the luxury market in France is evolving rapidly – with publications and brands working together in innovative new ways to reach consumers.

“All the big maisons of luxury want to have more of a connection with the audience,” says Chopin. “They want to share their story, to show their heritage. For example, they are opening workshops which they didn’t do in the past.

“They are adopting more of a storytelling strategy. They want to talk with our audience, but not just through advertisements, but also experiences. So, we have done a lot of special projects with them because they want to have the validation of our brand.

“For example, we could have a special dinner for a brand and organise a talk. It’s part of the diversification – they are looking for something different and more meaningful than just doing advertising.”

For luxury brands, making good use of all Prisma Media’s platforms to reach a wide demographic is a crucial part of the partnership.

“All the touch points are obviously very important for them because you don’t reach the same audience with print that you do with digital,” adds Chopin. “So, we have an offer which include print, digital and social.

“You reach younger people with digital and social as well as diversification. For instance, Milk is doing a collaboration with the shoe brand VEJA and The Good Life is collaborating with the clothes brand A.P.C.”

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Resilience of print and rise of video

In terms of print, Chopin has seen magazines in France becoming more of a collector’s item, as has been the case in many other countries.

“Print magazines have definitely become a collectable object in the French market, which means we have to work even harder to make the content as good as possible,” she says. “Magazines are expensive, and people don’t buy them that easily anymore, so we have to make beautiful publications. That’s one of our goals.”

Content appears on Prisma Media’s luxury brand websites about a month after it has appeared in print and is free to read. The company is also using it websites to find new ways to connect with its audience.

“Out next big challenge is video, and we have been doing a lot of it,” she says. “It reaches everybody and it’s a really good way to do storytelling for a brand. It’s a great way to capture our DNA and our voice. And you can track the conversion of the audience. It’s a very efficient format and very entertaining.”

Like all other media organisations, Prisma Media is assessing just how big an effect the rise of AI will have on its operations.

“Obviously we are very curious about AI,” Chopin says. “I think it will help us with our work, but not really with content. We have to be very careful because the public is looking for authenticity.

“So, for the writing of our magazine, I’m not sure where AI will fit in. But, for example, the translation of our magazine, AI is amazing because it’s a very low-cost service to do that. It used to be very expensive to translate the magazines. When it comes to AI, it’s very much a work in progress.”

With Prisma Media also finalising the acquisition of Côté Maison, a leading media group in high-end decoration, in 2023, there is a real sense of momentum in the publisher’s new luxury division.

“The group is very dynamic, and it did a lot of acquisitions for the new luxury brand division,” Chopin points out. “The magazine economy is not very strong, but Prisma Media is a solid group that is very ambitious. It’s really exciting to be part of this unfolding story.”