Weg takes on Getaway with 'go!'

"The approach of go! is the same as that of Weg," says Bun Booyens, editor of Weg and now editor-in-chief for both magazines. "Our focus remains on affordable destinations which are accessible to everyone. We do, however, know only too well that Weg cannot just be translated - go! will have its own voice and approach."

The print run for the first issue will be 60 000, and Weg and go! will have a joint advertising tariff. Booyens' two assistant editors are Andrea Weiss (former assistant editor of the Cape Argus and until recently at the University of Cape Town) will be responsible for go! and Barnie Louw (former supplement editor of Weg) will be responsible for Weg.

According to John Relihan, publisher for Media24 family magazines, this was a logical next step for Weg. "Weg's English readers have been asking for quite some time for an English magazine with the Weg recipe," says Relihan.

Weg has been one of South Africa's largest publication successes. The Afrikaans magazine was launched in April 2004 as a bi-monthly, becoming monthly in April 2005, under the name of Wegbreek. In February 2005, it complied with Cape Supreme Court ruling to change its name to Weg, following an application by Ramsay, Son & Parker, publishers of Getaway magazine.

Weg is now the official market leader in South Africa in the magazine category for outdoor and travel. The latest audited circulation figures (July to December 2005) for Weg are 77 184 per month, nearly 2 000 more than Getaway. Weg also received a Pica at the November 2005 award ceremony as the best magazine in the category for outdoor, travel and conservation.