Little more than a week after PaperCity introduced it's new perfect-bound magazine, a new entry in the city's sophisticated media arena — CityBook — starts landing in mailboxes and at chichi locations across the city.
What makes this book different from the other publications vying for readers' eyes and high-end advertising dollars is, according to editor-in-chief Jeff Gremillion, the combination of "intellect and actual journalism" with the expected elements of fashion, food and society.
"You can call it a beautiful magazine that is smart or a smart magazine that is beautiful," he tells CultureMap.
If the first edition cover is any indication, CityBook will indeed be different. The cover features the intriguing Cammie Gilbert, "Heavy Metal Sweetheart," showcasing her full array of tatoos and blue dreadlocks. Gremillion explains, "We love Cammie. She's probably going to be the next big rock star from Houston."
Both Gremillion, former editor of Houston Modern Luxury, and publisher Lisa Holthouse compare CityBook to Vanity Fair, as Holthouse says "combining style with substance."
She adds that she had never imagined moving into media. Her interests have been more in the philanthropic arena. She and her husband, Michael Holthouse, founded Prepared 4 Life, which sponsors the highly successful Lemonade Day fundraiser.
A self-confessed magazine fanatic, Holthouse says, "He (Jeff) is truly the reason that I jumped into this game. It was his big idea. I jumped into his world. He believes so completely in this magazine."
For Gremillion, who holds a graduate degree from Columbia School of Journalism, it is a long-time dream to have his own magazine. As he likes to say, "We are reinventing the city magazine for the people who are reinventing the city."
CityBook rolls out this week with 40,000 copies, 10,000 of those mailed and the remainder distributed across 700 area locations. Beginning in March, the publication will be monthly, the first several issues will combine months, September-October, November-December, January-February.
Houston's new all-local magazine hits mailboxes and chic locations this week.
