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Elle (magazine)

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Elle is a major French weekly lifestyle magazine. It is recognized as one of the world's largest fashion and lifestyle publications.

ELLE Magazine Logo
ELLE Magazine Logo

The magazine offers a wide variety of content. This includes fashion, beauty, and general lifestyle topics. It also explores social and political issues. Today, the brand has a massive global reach. It reaches over 250 million people every month. This influence is spread through many different international editions.

The magazine functions through a complex system of global editions and spin-offs. There are 50 international editions currently in operation. These editions allow the brand to reach different cultures. Some versions are specific to certain regions. For example, Elle Hong Kong and Elle Québec serve local audiences. There are also specialized publications called spin-offs. These include Elle Décoration for home design. Elle Men focuses on men's lifestyle. Elle à Table focuses on food.

ELLE Magazine Logo
ELLE Magazine Logo

As of 2026, there are 51 main editions and many more specialized ones.

Elle was founded in Paris in 1945. The founder was Hélène Gordon-Lazareff. She was born in Russia but raised in Paris. She returned from New York City to start the magazine. She wanted to create a publication for a new type of woman. These women were independent, modern, and active. This was a significant time in history. Women in France had just won the right to vote in 1944. The first issue was published on 21 November 1945. It featured actress Yolande Bloin on the cover.

ELLE Magazine Logo
ELLE Magazine Logo

The history of Elle is filled with famous cultural moments. In 1947, the magazine featured the work of Christian Dior. This was only eight months after his debut show. In 1952, Brigitte Bardot appeared on the cover at age 17. The magazine also featured Grace Kelly in April 1956. Marilyn Monroe appeared on the cover in July 1956. By the 1960s, the magazine had 800,000 readers in France. It was so dominant that it had a famous slogan. The slogan was "Si elle lit, elle lit Elle." This means "If she reads, she reads Elle."

Ownership and business deals have shaped the magazine over time. In 1987, the Lagardère Group launched Elle Decoration. In 1995, the magazine's worldwide circulation reached 5 million copies. In 2011, the Hearst Corporation made a €651M deal with Lagardère. This deal allowed Hearst to publish Elle in fifteen countries. These included the United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, Russia, and Ukraine. Lagardère kept the rights to the French edition. They also remained the guarantor of brand consistency. In 2018, Lagardère sold Elle France to Daniel Křetínský. He owns the company Czech Media Invest.

Elle uses its platform to address serious social topics. It covers gender equality and advocates for equal pay. The magazine has published a "Women in Politics" issue. It also reports on women's health and reproductive rights. The magazine covers social justice issues like racial equality. It has reported on the Black Lives Matter movement. Elle also focuses on inclusivity and representation. In 2021, the magazine made a major environmental decision. All global editions announced a ban on fur. This ban began on 1 January 2023. They wanted to support animal welfare and sustainable fashion.

Many different countries have their own unique Elle stories. Elle China was the first four-color fashion magazine in China. It helped open the Chinese textile market. In 1985, the American and British editions launched. The Brazilian edition was the first to feature a transgender model on its cover. This happened in December 2011 with model Lea T. In 2026, a new edition called Elle Baltic launched for Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. There is also a plan for an English-language Elle Afrique Francophone. This will launch at the end of 2026 and cover 23 countries.

ELLE Magazine Logo
ELLE Magazine Logo
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