Our History

Founded in 1944 by Helen Valentine, “Seventeen” magazine was the first modern ‘teen magazine’. After an immediate success, it became iconic in establishing the tastes and behaviors of successive generation of teen girls. The magazine played a vital role in shaping the modern teen girl ideal as consumers of popular culture and helped create the concept of ‘teenager’ as a distinct demographic in that era. The early “Seventeen” provided a generation of the thinking young women with information on citizenship and clothing, politics and popularity, adult occupations and adolescent preoccupations, until the economic and social forces converged to reshape the magazine toward teen consumerism. Later, Seventeen took a more fashion and romance-oriented approach in presenting its material while promoting self-confidence in young women.

Valentine wanted Seventeen to address the teenage girl as one that wasn’t only interested in fashion and boys, but who also had a political and social conscience. She wanted the magazine to show that teens needed to be taken more seriously. The magazine’s target audience was right in its title. Valentine once described the age of seventeen as “the age when a girl is no longer a child, yet isn’t quite a woman.” Thus the brand caters to the adolescent needs of smart and capable young women who are one of the most significant economic forces of the society.

Seventeen was America’s first modern teen magazine that created the concept of ‘teenager’ as a distinct demographic in that era.

Seventeen was the ultimate content destination for Gen Z and young millennials celebrating real stories and experiences of a teenager’s life. Our relatable voice, clear-cut service, and coverage of all the things teens love makes us the go-to place for young people.

Early “Seventeen” provided young girls information on citizenship, politics and occupations before taking a more fashion and romance oriented approach.