An ad-free shopping magazine is apparently not a contradiction in terms

The first issue of ShopSmart, a new quarterly shopping magazine from the same organization, Consumers Union, that publishes Consumer Reports magazine and the companion online site ConsumerReports.org, is on Canaadian newsstands this week (thanks for the tip, Joyce). ShopSmart retails for C$5.99($4.99 in the U.S.). Subscriptions are apparently not offered.

Unfortunately, though understandably, like its parent Consumer Reports, the focus is exclusively on U.S. pricing and availability, but many of the products, in this globalized world, are available in both countries. For instance, Sears Kenmore vacuum cleaners know no border, though the prices would be different.

Like Consumer Reports(and unlike Lucky and LouLou) ShopSmart doesn't take any ads at all. However, unlike, say, Adbusters, ShopSmart actually thinks shopping is a fun and worthwhile activity that can be made more enjoyable and productive. The only ads are "house ads" for Consumer Reports products and line extensions. And the magazine makes it clear on the masthead and elsewhere that it accepts no "free" samples; everything that is tested is purchased at retail by a team of buyers, just as readers would.

About 800,000 copies of the first issue were distributed in the U.S. and Canada.

"Women's shopping magazines too often read like product catalogues, serving advertisers and not their readers," said Jerry Steinbrink, vice-president of Publishing for Consumers Union.

While the monthly Consumer Reports provides comprehensive reviews of an array of products within each category, ShopSmart will assemble the "best of the best" for shoppers.

"ShopSmart is exactly the kind of magazine women need to make savvy, fast, and informed decisions about the products they buy and use everyday," said Lisa Lee Freeman, the magazine's editor. "Readers of ShopSmart will learn when it's safe to splurge and when it pays to save."

The first issue contains lots of tips on saving the small amounts of money that seems to dribble away every week. Recommendations include talking down the price on anything you really want or need and how to chop $15 off your weekly food bill by shopping in more than one store and only buying on-sale items. There's also a take-it-along, room-by-room guide to making your home safer. And some excellent advice on preparing for and conducting a negotiation for purchasing a car.

Consumer Reports has a circulation of over 4.1 million; ConsumerReports.org has over 2.3 million paid subscribers, the largest subscription-based website in the industry. ShopSmart is another spinoff that follows on successful launches of Consumer Reports on Health and Consumer Reports Money Adviser both of which have had successful launches and subscription growth.