TVA has cooked up a new cross-platform product that includes a chef-branded magazine.

SIGNÉ M hit newsstands in Quebec at the end of May and more than 50,000 copies sold out at various outlets in just two weeks. TVA printed 15,000 more to meet the demand, the company said, adding there are also 10,000 subscribers.

The French-language magazine centres around well-known Quebec chef Louis-Francois Marcotte, who offers recipes in the print magazine. There's also a related TVA-produced cooking show starring Marcotte called UN ÉTÉ SIGNÉ M (airing weekly on TVA) as well as a website.

But the magazine isn't a custom publication according to TVA Publications president Jocelyn Poirier. "It's our magazine, a brand owned by TVA," he told Masthead.

Regarding the success of the first issue, "It's the quality of the magazine, the chef, so altogether the power of our brand and promotional tools," said Poirier. "The art, the paper, the way we're presenting the recipes and the content — it's different."

Poirier said there will be four issues in the fall and at least six issues planned for 2013. "Most likely we'll have to do more because of the success," he said.

The introductory cover price was $4.99 with the regular price for next issues at $6.99.

"It's a breath of fresh air that we can still launch a magazine and have an almost instant success with advertisers and readers," said Poirier. "We're really excited about that."