You are Editorial Manager at Brand Studio. Can you tell us what 'editorial' means?

Editorial strategy is the fairy godmother of content.  It focuses on media, formats, structures, titles and words, as well as page layouts, for the sake of meaning. Editorial strategy cherishes content, protects it, supports it and is its guarantor.

So there is no content without an editorial strategy?

That shouldn't be the case when it comes to quality content. While it's true that an editorial strategy is based on willingness, effort and high standards, it's above all a question of being aware of what you're doing. Editorial strategy means understanding what you have to say, to whom, why and within what constraints, in order to design the most appropriate content. It's a huge playing field. There are hundreds of possibilities, hundreds of choices.

So what advice would you give your customers about getting started?

First of all, don't rush! It's common to think about format before meaning. Do you want a 48-page in-house magazine for your institution? A 'retrospective' book for your company's anniversary? Our approach at the Brand Studio is to 'deconstruct' this need, or rather, to build a step-by-step strategy, tailor-made for your project. During an initial collaboration phase, we take the time to listen to you and understand your needs, targets and challenges. Together we refine and confirm the foundations of the editorial strategy, through workshops and recommendations. We then move on to the artistic design phase of your publication. Production is only launched once all these stages have been completed to everyone's satisfaction.

Which corporate publishing projects carried out by the Brand Studio can you cite as references for this type of approach?

The quality of a publication is not measured only by both graphic appeal and the quality of its texts. A project is successful when it meets the planned strategy and each and every identified needs.

City, the monthly publication of the City of Luxembourg, based on complex information and communication objectives, is a perfect example of this. It is also the case for the magazine Gudd! produced twice a year for the Ministry of Agriculture, Gazette, designed to mark the European Year of Culture for Esch2022, and Luxembourg in Transition, for the Department of Spatial Planning of the Ministry of Energy and Spatial Planning. When it comes to books, the approach is identical. We can mention H, produced for the 20th anniversary of EBRC, or Helix, published to mark the inauguration of POST's head office. All these publications are the fruit of a will, thought, choice and collaboration that are close to craftsmanship. They are creations in which both Maison Moderne and its clients have believed, and which the teams have made their own. And, of course, the reader is always at the heart of every magazine.