i-D Magazine sold to Vice publications

Iconic fashion publication i-D has been sold to multimedia

company Vice. Vice publications are distributed freely and its content features mostly independent arts, fashion, cultural matters, and is notorious for its controversial commentary.

The company is expanding into fashion coverage by buying the British style publication and Vice executives said fashion was a topic that complemented their existing coverage, and that they were looking for a magazine that could benefit from Vice’s expertise in multimedia.

“Our readers were fashionable, but we weren’t a fashion magazine per se,” said Andrew Creighton, the president of Vice, referring to the company’s flagship magazine. “There’s a huge opportunity there to create a huge and robust platform for fashion and creativity,” reported the Herald Tribune.

Mr. Creighton said he knew i-D’s brand well because he worked there in the late 1990s, when he handled the magazine’s advertising. He said that the magazine’s co-founders Terry and Tricia Jones would remain minority partners.

Mr. Creighton said Vice would keep i-D’s nearly two dozen London-based staff members and that he hoped to add to the staff. He said that the company planned to make other purchases in the media world in the coming year, with a focus on established brands that could build their digital presence.

“The key for us is to find brand and content companies that we really respect, but haven’t really transitioned into the digital marketplace,” Mr. Creighton said.

In the past Vice has created a retail clothing chain, Vice Retail. Vice also has strong ties with clothing line American Apparel, a frequent advertiser in Vice Magazine.