Local magazine saved thanks to social media
Social media has been criticized for its negative effects, but it has saved one D.C. magazine from going out of business at the height of the pandemic.
Andréa Butler, editor-in-chief for SESI Magazine. Photo courtesy of Butler.
In 2020, Sesi Magazine, the only local teen magazine for Black girls on newsstands, was struggling to survive after revenue dried up when businesses and institutions shut down as COVID 19 took hold.
The publication had been in business for 10 years but publisher and editor-in-chief Andréa Butler explained that it had had financial difficulties for a while. “We didn't have advertising support, so money was always an issue," said Butler. "But when the pandemic happened, it happened at the exact time that we were printing, and nobody knew what was happening.”
Taking the advice of her circulation manager, Butler printed 2,000 copies of the magazine meant for the newsstand but they ended up in her garage due to the lack of distribution. The editions were later recycled, at a significant financial loss.
The magazine is sold on newsstands but half of its subscribers are public schools and libraries. "So when they [schools and libraries] closed, we weren't getting any renewals, and that's where a lot of money would come from," Butler said.
Left with no choice, she turned to social media to help save the magazine. "I let everyone know what was happening and that we needed donations. One of the Black creatives that I kept in contact with, Melissa [Kimble], offered to write a blog post on the fundraiser. I sent her a statement and some of the previous magazine covers to use in the post. She shared it on the blkcreatives platform, and people started donating."
Sesi Magazine Winter 2021 Cover. Photo courtesy of Sesi Magazine.
The campaign also captured attention from Roxane Gay, author of The New York Times’ best-selling essay collection Bad Feminist. "She retweeted it [on Twitter] and donated, which was really cool," Butler said. As a result, Sesi Magazine received $8,000 in donations in a matter of four days.
While Butler was fortunate enough to receive the support and donations to save her business, this isn't the same reality for many small businesses in the D.C. Metropolitan Area. Though the Small Business Administration (SBA) offers different forms of funding to help businesses stay afloat, nearly 235 brick-and-mortar businesses have permanently closed since the first known coronavirus report in the District on March 7, 2020.
Despite the struggles her business faced this year, Butler is hopeful for the magazine’s future. "I hope that we're still here," she said. "I just hope that we can be around for years to come and that we can get large amounts of subscriptions, donations, and advertising."
If you would like to support Sesi Magazine, you can subscribe for $15 annually, or donate on its website www.sesimag.com You can also purchase the magazine at your local Barnes & Noble or Books-A-Million.
