Japan's economic slide has dealt a serious blow to a bible for the nation's wannabe gentlemen, as Esquire Japan Edition, one of the oldest overseas versions of the U.S. lifestyle magazine, has announced it will cease publication in May.
Esquire Japan was first released in April 1987 as a pioneering men's lifestyle magazine at the height of the asset-inflated bubble economy. Esquire Japan has since printed features for men that current editors say focused on "the art of living," including ways to enrich intelligence and cultural life as well as enjoy urban nightlife.
At first the magazine mainly covered topics linked to American culture. But since the mid-1990s, subjects grew closer to people's real lives, covering housing, bars and design. It also tried to boost interest in Japanese literature.