There's gold in luxury ads: Magazine publishers see sales gains

NEW YORK, (REUTERS) - Glossy products still look best on the glossy page.

Advertising for luxury brands is driving increases in first-quarter ad pages at big magazine publishers, a welcome dose of good news for companies that have grappled with layoffs, restructurings and general malaise in a business whose fortunes have fallen as the online world has grown.

Conde Nast, Hearst Magazines, Time Inc and Rodale all expect a rise in ad pages sold in their magazines for the first quarter.

Conde Nast, whose magazines include Vogue, GQ and Vanity Fair, expects its strongest first-quarter in five years, with a 5 per cent increase in ad pages. The news was so unusual that the company even issued a press release on the subject, something it hasn't done in sometime.