Condé Nast & Walmart: Match Made In Aisle 5 Heaven?

Forgive us if we're behind, but until now, we weren't entirely versed on Walmart's custom beauty catalog-meets-magazine, BeautyScoop. And we certainly weren't aware that the creative force behind the big-box mini-glossy was none other than the same publishers who bring us Allure, Glamour, and GQ. Yes, for the past year Walmart has been getting a helping hand from Condé Nast, and perhaps beginning to put itself on the map in an unexpected way.

If the news of this unlikely business pairing comes as a surprise, well... that's because it's sorta meant to be. As today's WWD reports, "The collaboration is secret. Except for its brands, the words Condé Nast do not appear anywhere in BeautyScoop." This means that while we associate our monthly reads and style inspiration — both the aspirational (Vogue's endless luxury) and more practical (Lucky's shopping savvy) — with the famous media company, we haven't quite made that connection with Walmart... yet.

Make no mistake, BeautyScoop is not just about the best beauty buys at affordable prices — something we love, for the record. With the elevated taste of the publishing house and Walmart's massive advertising budget, the mini-magazine is poised to be more influential than the average retailer's publication. Think it can't be done? Tell that to the 2.5 million customers who have the magazine directly shipped to their home. Even if the mag is only 12 pages long, getting that kind of circulation is a pretty impressive feat. Almost as impressive as Condé's plethora of seasoned and talented editors who have been lending their voices and advice to the mag, and perhaps even making people who don't already shop at Walmart take another look.

You tell us: Is this new(ish) business marriage Walmart's way of mastering the high/low mix? With Condé Nast's viewpoint behind the pages, would you be more likely to open BeautyScoop? And, does anyone else think the cover is really pretty? Tell us what you think of this unexpected pair in the comments. (WWD)