Alpha Media Group put Maxim up for sale in March with the hopes of attracting “meaningful and beneficial” offers. Well, the latter request isn’t going to happen. According to the New York Post, Maxim lost about $5 million last year, and ad pages continue to plummet.

We suspect that will keep potential partners/new owners at bay, unless they’ve got extremely deep pockets. Speaking of that, could you imagine if Michael Bloomberg bought Maxim? He’d be a blast at the magazine’s annual Super Bowl party:

Random Dude: “Hey Mikey, beer me!”

Bloomberg: “I would rather not beer, anyone. Thank you.”

Anyone interested in buying the most dude bro magazine of all dude bro magazines? Well good news, because Alpha Media Group has just put Maxim up for sale. Apparently AMG’s board of directors are finished with the magazine, and are seeking either a buyer or a new group of investors.

If you’re the kind of person who wants to purchase a glossy in a climate that isn’t exactly magazine friendly, you better act fast. Well, at least that’s according to a release from AMG:

The frequency of inquiries to partner or acquire with the Maxim brand has increased dramatically over the past year. Maxim constantly evaluates its position in the market and has decided now is the optimal time to entertain strategic relationships and offers. The brand will only consider offers that are meaningful and beneficial to both the brand and its investors.

Maxim, the magazine for dudes who enjoy being dudes, is launching a fragrance line. Alpha Media Group, Maxim’s parent, is partnering with Omni Scents to produce the Maxim Fragrance Collection, due to hit shelves this fall.

“The Maxim brand continues to resonate with men around the globe,” said Jack Kliger, executive chairman of Alpha Media Group, in a statement. ”We welcome this first fragrance brand for men, which will provocatively express the brand’s unique voice and believe it will have tremendous appeal to the global Maxim consumer.”

While the jokes practically write themselves when it comes to Maxim cologne, this could be a good thing for the magazine. The brand simply doesn’t have the same appeal it once did. But if there are still guys out there who buy Axe, there is definitely a place for Maxim fragrances.

Maxim magazine is cutting back on its rate base and its publishing frequency starting next year. According to Adweek, the magazine lists its circulation for 2013 at 2 million, which is down from its current mark of 2.5 million. Maxim is also cutting back to just 10 issues next year.

It hasn’t been a great year for the magazine. In March, as part of a “restructuring,” Maxim laid off six editorial staffers. Newsstand sales are also down 20 percent compared to 2011.

Dan Bova has been promoted from editor-in-chief of Maxim to chief content officer. Bova was editor-in-chief since early this year, and executive editor prior to that. He was also formerly editor-in-chief of Stuff.

“Dan has the industry savvy necessary to evolve with the rapidly changing media landscape and understands the needs and media habits of our readers,” said Maxim President, Ben Madden. “He is the ideal person to continue to lead Maxim to new editorial heights, leveraging our compelling content across multiple platforms and across our readers’ various touchpoints.”

Bova’s new role is effective immediately.

According to Maxim readers, Bar Refaeli is the most beauftul woman in the world. The latest Maxim Hot 100 List — available on newsstands May 29 — was picked by the magazine’s fans. Refaeli beat out Olivia Munn, Mila Kunis, Katy Perry and Olivia Wilde for the top spot.

Refaeli told Maxim that she was “truly honored” to have won, but she might want to reconsider that statement. She did beat out those lovely ladies mentioned above, which is great. But a cartoon, Stephen Colbert and Amanda Knox — yes, the woman who maybe murdered her friend — also made the Hot 100 List, so Refaeli should probably take the honor with a grain of salt.

Maxim’s editors, however, were excited that readers chose Refaeli. She “puts the ‘promise’ in the Promised Land,” they explained. We have no idea what that means, but it sounds like a compliment.

Despite all the recent reshuffling in its staff,  Maxim remains tethered to its initial man-minded mission, featuring pieces with the brashly irreverent yet surprisingly instructive tone of an enlightened frat brother.

“I’d say the level of humor and discourse has gotten a little sharper and smarter,” said editor-in-chief Dan Bova, “but the goal is still to be that plain-spoken, witty best friend guiding you through the guy universe.”

But don’t think you’re going to break in with a pitch about yet another celebrity. ”Somebody proposing we should interview Chris Rock is not being particularly helpful. We do most of the star-wrangling ourselves,” Bova explained.

So, what type of pitches are editors looking for? Get the details in How To Pitch: Maxim

This article is one of several mediabistro.com features exclusively available to AvantGuild subscribers. If you’re not a member yet, you can register for as little as $55 a year and get access to these articles, discounts on seminars and workshops, and more.

The staffers of Maxim has been hit by some layoffs that were deemed “corporate restructuring.” TechCrunch reports that six staffers — including Senior Editor Seth Porges — were cut in the morning:

We’ve confirmed that many employees were suddenly laid off this morning in what management called a “corporate restructuring”. Departments that were reaped include editorial, web, and photo… We originally published told us about half of Maxim team was laid off but we’ve now confirmed it the cuts were confined to the web, editorial, and photo teams.

Maxim only employed about 13 full time staffers, so that is one hell of a “restructuring.”

Before the Giants win the Super Bowl on Sunday, there are parties to be had. The New York Post reports that ESPN The Magazine, Rolling Stone, Maxim and Playboy are all having festivities, starting tonight. Since we won’t be attending them, let’s break down what we’re missing.

ESPN is kicking things off tonight with a party featuring a performance by Drake. Cam Newton will be the guest of honor, which is cool, but Drake — a man who sings about love, longing to love and loving love — isn’t a guy that we associate with letting loose.

This is Rolling Stone’s first Super Bowl party, and it’s bringing LMFAO, Lupe Fiasco, Cobra Starship and Gym Class Heroes to entertain guests. A ticket for the magazine’s Saturday party is $1,000.

Read more

There are couple of new staffers to the Details editorial staff.  James Oliver Cury has been named online editorial projects manager. In the role, Cury will be responsible for all digital editorial product, including content partnerships, e-commerce, and app development.

Cury arrives Details from another men’s magazine–Maxim, where he worked as online editorial director.

Rachel Rosenblit is the new entertainment editor at Details. She’ll be in charge for booking celebrity features, editing entertainment content in the Culture section, and covering film and television for the magazine.

Prior to joining Details, Rosenblit was associates editor of features at Elle magazine.

“Both James and Rachel are valuable additions to the Details family,” Dan Peres, Details editor-in-chief, says. “I look forward to working with them as we continue to grow our brand, and I am excited to further develop our digital efforts as we build the presence of Details.com as a leading men’s style and culture destination.”

Cury and Rosenblit’s appointments begin immediately.