SHE Media


SHE Media, formerly SheKnows Media, is an American digital media company.

Overview

SHE Media publishes entertainment, fashion, health, career, parenting, and food multi-media content, with corporate advertisers like Pepsi, Kellogg's, Macy's, Harley-Davidson, Target, and Clorox. In 2014, it acquired #BlogHer and STYLECASTER. In 2016, it acquired HelloFlo. Currently, the company is part of Penske Media.
The SHE Media Partner Network offers bloggers and social media influencers a portfolio of monetization opportunities. SHE Media is the creator of the annual #Femvertising Awards, which pay recognition to brands and agencies that produce pro-female advertising. Its #BlogHer brand hosts a series of large conferences for women entrepreneurs and content creators each year.
SHE Media has offices in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago and Scottsdale, Ariz.

History

SHE Media was founded as SheKnows.com in 1999 by Kyle Cox, Betsy Gartrell-Judd, Nancy J. Price, and another woman, as a subset of Price and Bailey's fledgling online media company, Myria Media.. Cox was the company's general manager. It was designed for "21st-century mothers" with blogs, videos, and articles about entertainment, lifestyle, and parenting written by industry experts, journalists, and published authors.
The company was acquired by Evolve Media, which sold it to Great Hill Partners in 2012. In 2014, Philippe Guelton became CEO, based in Manhattan. In March 2018, SHE Media was acquired by Penske Media. The price was reported to be US $40 million. In July 2018, Samantha Skey became CEO of SHE Media.

Properties

SheKnows.com

SHE Media defines SheKnows.com as site dedicated to "providing women with the practical service they need and the daily inspiration they want to live full, authentic lives. As the flagship property of SHE Media, SheKnows.com’s editorial and branded content spans topics that include food, family, health, beauty, entertainment and more. The site was a Webby Best in Lifestyle Site honoree in 2017. In 2015, SheKnows.com received an OMMA Award in the Family/Parenting/Women’s Interest Category. In 2013, it was listed in Forbes’ Top Websites for Women list.

#BlogHer

On November 3, 2014, the company acquired #BlogHer, which brought a large network of women content creators and a legacy conference and events revenue stream to the business. The deal was estimated by Ad Age to be worth between $30 and $40 million. #BlogHer co-founders Jory Des Jardins, Elisa Camahort, and Lisa Stone joined SHE Media as executives. The merger offers #BlogHer customers access to SHE Media's multi-media resources and increased the company's share of the women's presence on the internet.
SHE Media describes #BlogHer events, which began in 2005, as “the place where female content creators and entrepreneurs connect, amplify their diverse voices, share authentic content, as well as explore opportunities to earn.” Today, it attracts thousands of social media influencers, bloggers, content creators, hand-raisers, industry thought leaders and brand executives each year. The conference series is regarded for its commitment to diversity. Senior Forbes Contributor Christine Michel Carter reported in 2017 that SHE Media commits to giving women of color 40% or more main-stage and breakout session speaking roles at every BlogHer conference. Past speakers have included Serena Williams, Kim Kardashian West, Gwyneth Paltrow, Gabrielle Union, Amy Schumer, Jessica Alba, Chelsea Clinton, Carla Hall, Sheryl Crow, Martha Stewart, Ava DuVernay, Arianna Huffington, and more.

STYLECASTER

On August 15, 2014, SHE Media purchased STYLECASTER Media Group in Manhattan to broaden its customer base, to complement its existing market, and to better target young, cosmopolitan, and fashion-forward women. It expected to realize $50 million in revenue from the combined organization, according to The Wall Street Journal, which reported that the $10 million purchase was an all-stock transaction. Founders Ari Goldberg and David Goldberg initially became part of the SheKnows organization. Editor-in-Chief Laurel Pinson also moved to SHE Media from STYLECASTER.
Today, STYLECASTER “brings millennial women the ideas, inspiration and tips they need to live with style and substance,” according to SHE Media. The site was a Webby Award nominee and honoree for the Best Fashion & Beauty Site in 2015, 2016 and 2017.

HelloFlo

In April 2016, SHE Media acquired HelloFlo, a website designed to normalize the conversation about women’s and girls' bodies at every stage of life and the creator of viral videos like "Camp Gyno", "First Moon Party" and "A Visit from Aunt Flo". In 2017, HelloFlo was the winner of a Webby Award for Best Health Site. That same year, it received an OMMA Award for Best Health/Wellness site.

Programs

The #Femvertising Awards

The #Femvertising Awards, created by SHE Media, honor excellence in pro-female advertising. Based on a term now CEO Samantha Skey coined in an article published in MediaPost in 2014, SHE Media launched the #Femvertising Awards the following year to celebrate ads that challenge social and gender norms through advertising. Since 2015, the term Femvertising and the #Femvertising Awards have been covered by a variety of media outlets, including NBC Nightly News, Adweek, The Huffington Post and more.

Hatch

SHE Media launched Hatch in 2015 to explore important social issues impacting Generation Z. The video workshops, created by teens and tweens to serve as a resource for parents, provide meaningful insights on topics that include social media anxiety, feminism, gender roles, cyberbullying, microaggressions and fake news.
Hatch has been published in news outlets that include CNN, TIME, AdWeek, Upworthy, Buzzfeed, and more. In October 2017, Good Morning America featured the Hatch #DigitalDetox workshop, in which a group of 12- and 13-year-olds who belong to the program shared what it was like to give up social media, online games, streaming video and texting for an entire week.

#ThePitch

With the desire to “help change the ratio of women-run businesses,” SHE Media launched #ThePitch in 2015 to elevate female entrepreneurship and innovation and inspire a global community of women. #ThePitch is a live competition that spotlights up-and-coming women entrepreneurs and innovators, giving them the chance to explain their business ideas to a panel of judges at SHE Media’s BlogHer conferences. The winner of #ThePitch is ultimately selected via popular vote by conference attendees. Winners receive marketing support from SHE Media.
#ThePitch has been sponsored by leading brands like Go Daddy and American Express, and emcees have included influential businesswomen like Sallie Krawcheck, JJ Ramberg and Camila Alves McConaughey.