Flicking through the pages of Gourmet Traveller, several things are bound to catch your attention — the shiny gold cutlery, bright-coloured tablecloths, perfectly styled plates toppling with food, or the thinnest of thin stems on a set of glistening wine glasses.
But while some of those products may be part of brand partnerships, you wouldn’t necessarily know it.
For Gourmet Traveller editor David Meagher, that’s exactly the point.
As the magazine turns 60, Meagher highlights the publications strategy to increasingly focus on creating brand partnerships that feel natural to readers, while still delivering value for advertisers.
Published by Are Media, Gourmet Traveller operates fundamentally as a lifestyle, luxury travel, and gastronomy publication. Food and wine are core anchors, but high-end travel, architecture, design, and commercial partnerships are equally essential to its identity, revenue model, and content ecosystem.
Speaking to B&T, Meagher said Gourmet Traveller has moved beyond simply selling print, digital and social advertising, instead working more closely with brands to create experiences for their customers.
“We’ve always had a very good, loyal advertiser base, but we’ve worked in a more intimate and close way with some of the big brands that we work with,” he said.
That has included working with Lexus, which is a sponsor of the upcoming Gourmet Traveller Restaurant of the Year Awards, as well as skincare brand Le Mer on a bespoke pop-up experience in Sydney with chef Neil Perry.
Together they created ‘The Miracle Meal’ – an exclusive two-day culinary pop-up in the tree-lined suburb of Double Bay at Grand Torino which featured a bespoke menu inspired by La Mer’s ‘Miracle Broth’ and offered guests curated dining and takeaway experiences.
For Meagher, he believes the strongest partnerships are those where the brand and publication “share similar values, audiences and interests”.
“When you have a similar kind of ethos, similar customers and similar interests it does tend to work really well,” he said.
That can also extend to the smaller details within the magazine, with brands including Riedel, Wedgwood, Waterford, Hermès and Scanpan naturally appearing across food, wine and entertaining content.
“It’s really easy to work with brands like these and a very natural integration for us,” Meagher said.
However, he stressed that Gourmet Traveller does not try to disguise advertising as editorial.
“I think the ads should always stand out as advertising,” he said. “You can’t deceive readers.”
Instead, the publication aims to ensure advertising fits with the overall aesthetic and provides value to its audience.
The approach comes as Gourmet Traveller reports readership growth of 43 per cent year-on-year, with the publication preparing to celebrate its 60th anniversary in November.
Meagher, who took the editorial reins in September 2025, said maintaining a sense of consistency has also been important as the magazine evolves.
“We definitley try not to reinvent it every month,” he told B&T.
The magazine was redesigned at the beginning of this year, while its digital and social templates were also refreshed.
But Meagher said the publication’s long-term subscribers want evolution without losing the familiarity of the title.
“You don’t want to try something new with every single page,” he said. “You have to drip-feed those changes slowly.”
When said for the publication nothing beats the long-term partnerships with brands “where you can have multiple touch points”.
“Those are the sort of partnerships that are increasingly important for media brands like ours.”
The publication’s 60th anniversary will be celebrated alongside the Gourmet Traveller Restaurant of the Year Awards on 17 August, with more than 160 chefs, restaurateurs and industry figures expected to turn up.
