About DA MAN

DA MAN

DA MAN is an English-language Indonesian men's fashion and lifestyle magazine published in Jakarta by the DestinAsian Media Group. First published in May 2007, it appears on a bimonthly rhythm, with six regular issues a year, and it was created for male readers roughly between the ages of twenty and forty who follow international fashion, grooming, watches, travel and popular culture. Although its styling, photography and interview subjects give it a strongly international feel, DA MAN is an original, homegrown Indonesian title rather than a licensed franchise edition of a foreign magazine, a point its publisher has made repeatedly when readers assumed it must have been imported from overseas.

Origins and first publication in 2007

The magazine was first published in May 2007 in Jakarta. In a publisher's note written for the magazine's twelfth anniversary in 2019, publisher and editor-in-chief Ronald Liem recalled shooting for the moon when DA MAN was born and described how the title had become, in his assessment, the foremost men's fashion and lifestyle magazine in Indonesia while remaining an original homegrown brand. In an earlier anniversary note he recalled walking in Paris around the time of the launch and discussing the right name for the new magazine with a friend, settling on DA MAN as a strong choice. The name itself, a stylised rendering of the words the man, was intended to be short, masculine and memorable in both Indonesian and international settings.

Publisher, ownership and editorial leadership

DA MAN is published in Jakarta by the DestinAsian Media Group, the same Jakarta-based group behind the luxury travel title DestinAsian and the Indonesian edition of Prestige. Mastheads from recent years list Ronald Liem as publisher and editor-in-chief and as managing director of the publishing operation, with Maggie M. Halim as chairwoman and Francisca Liem as a director. The February to March 2024 issue was identified as volume 17, number 6, and the April to May 2024 issue opened volume 18, reflecting a continuous publishing history since 2007. The masthead in that period stated that all rights to the publication and the name were owned by PT Dama Mahardhika and that issues were distributed throughout Indonesia.

An international team behind an Indonesian title

One of the defining features of DA MAN is the way it combines a Jakarta editorial base with contributors and teams overseas. The publisher has noted that the magazine has teams based in Jakarta, Singapore and Los Angeles, among other places, which helps explain its access to Hollywood actors and international fashion shoots. Recent mastheads distinguish an Indonesia-based editorial team from a United States-based editorial team, with roles including creative direction, photography and fashion editing handled from the United States side. This structure allows the magazine to secure exclusive interviews and photo shoots with international actors while still producing local fashion, lifestyle and event coverage rooted in Jakarta.

Frequency and special issues

DA MAN is published six times a year as a bimonthly title. In addition to the regular issues, the brand produces special issues under the names DA MAN Style and DA MAN Caliber. According to the magazine's own masthead information, DA MAN Style is published twice a year and DA MAN Caliber once a year. The Style specials extend the magazine's fashion coverage in greater depth, while Caliber has been associated with the world of watches and precision instruments that forms a recurring part of the men's luxury market. Anniversary issues in April and May mark the title's 2007 launch month and have traditionally carried reflective publisher's notes reviewing the brand's growth.

Fashion and lifestyle editorial content

The core of DA MAN is men's fashion. Regular coverage includes runway and seasonal trend reporting, designer collections, styling features and photo editorials built around clothing, footwear and accessories. Alongside fashion, the magazine covers the wider lifestyle interests of its target reader: watches, grooming, fitness and wellbeing, food and drink, travel, hotels, technology and entertainment. Film and television coverage is a consistent element, ranging from advance features on major releases and games to interviews with actors about current projects. The mix is deliberately aspirational but practical, presenting international menswear in a form that a Jakarta reader can relate to local climates, occasions and retail availability.

Cover stars and exclusive interviews

Exclusive interviews and photo shoots with Hollywood actors, alongside features on Indonesian artists, have been central to the magazine's identity from its early years. Its documented cover subjects include Star Trek actor Chris Pine in the June to July 2009 issue, retired Japanese footballer and entrepreneur Hidetoshi Nakata in August to September 2009 and again in December 2015 to January 2016, Twilight actor Kellan Lutz in June to July 2010, Paul Wesley of The Vampire Diaries in April to May 2010, Step Up 3D star Rick Malambri in August to September 2010, Glee star Mark Salling in October to November 2010, Garrett Hedlund in December 2010 to January 2011, and Glee star Darren Criss in February 2011. Other featured actors in its pages have included Alex Meraz, Lucas Till, Daniel Dae Kim, Olivia Munn, Julia Jones, Brody Jenner, Grant Bowler, Jesse Metcalfe, Colton Haynes and Chord Overstreet of Glee, as well as Vikings actress Katheryn Winnick in a 2015 feature interview.

Distribution in Indonesia and overseas

DA MAN is distributed mainly in Indonesia, where it reaches readers through newsstands, bookstores and subscriptions in Jakarta and other major cities. It is also distributed in Singapore and the United States, a pattern consistent with its bilingual character and its overseas editorial presence. The magazine is catalogued as publishing in English and Indonesian, although its principal editorial language is English, which positions it for affluent Indonesian readers who are comfortable in English as well as for expatriate and visiting readers. Its presence on international digital magazine platforms has extended single-issue and subscription access well beyond its print distribution footprint.

Events and the DA MAN community

Beyond print, DA MAN has built a programme of reader and partner events in Jakarta. In October 2021, for example, the magazine partnered with the Italian watch brand Bvlgari to host a private gentlemen's dinner at The Dharmawangsa Jakarta, where guests viewed timepieces from the Octo Finissimo line and publisher Ronald Liem welcomed attendees alongside a representative of the brand. In April 2025 the magazine held a DA MAN Staycation weekend from 11 to 13 April at the 25hours Hotel Jakarta The Oddbird, where a select group of readers described as DA MAN Gentlemen were hosted for a curated programme exploring the newly opened hotel. Such events translate the magazine's print community into face-to-face gatherings built around hospitality, watches and men's lifestyle brands.

Digital presence and continuing publication

DA MAN maintains an official website at daman.co.id carrying online content between print issues, and it promotes its social media channels and digital editions to readers who prefer to read on screens. Recent issues, including the June to July 2025 edition, show the print magazine continuing on its established bimonthly schedule with the same mixture of fashion features, interviews, travel and hotel coverage and event reporting. The longevity of the title, approaching two decades since its 2007 debut, makes it one of the more durable men's lifestyle magazines in the Indonesian market, where many licensed international men's titles have come and gone while this homegrown brand has continued under the same publisher.

Place in Indonesian magazine publishing

Within Indonesia's magazine landscape, DA MAN occupies a distinctive niche. It is grouped in reference listings among the international-style titles published in Indonesia, yet its history shows it is not a local edition of a foreign masthead but an Indonesian creation with an international outlook. Published from Jakarta in English for readers aged twenty to forty, supported by special Style and Caliber issues, distributed at home and in Singapore and the United States, and anchored by exclusive celebrity interviews and local fashion coverage, it represents the DestinAsian Media Group's extension from luxury travel publishing into men's lifestyle publishing, and it remains the group's flagship title for male readers.