SheKnows Media has poached Susan Kaplow, Refinery29’s executive vice president of development and operations, as its new chief content officer.
SheKnows, which operates its namesake site, StyleCaster, and blogger network BlogHer, said Kaplow will be tasked with driving content strategy with a focus on editorial and talent development, as well as “scaling” content and traffic growth.
“My new job is kind of an amalgamation of what I’ve done in the past,” Kaplow told WWD. “I’ll be overseeing all the Web sites. All the editors in chief will report in to me. I will be in charge of content and talent recruiting.”
Kaplow added that a top priority is to focus on fine-tuning the “look and feel and voice” of SheKnows by “elevating” its contributor network, Experts Among Us.
“We want to give these special creators a platform to launch their brand,” Kaplow said of the contributor network.
Part of upping that appeal will include attracting a younger female Millennial reader without abandoning its core audience, she said, as well as centralizing some of the company’s editorial talent in its New York offices.
Most recently, Kaplow served as the executive vice president of development and operations for Refinery29, where she was responsible for editorial development, talent development, and scaling content and traffic growth. Prior to Refinery29, Kaplow was the vice president and general manager of Life and Style at The Huffington Post, the executive director of Web development at Condé Nast, as well as the vice president of content at Alloy Media + Marketing (now Defy Media).
“Having collaborated with Susan to scale consumer content and advertising revenue at Alloy earlier in our careers, I know she has the experience, passion and perspective to elevate SheKnows Media from a top-performing digital media company to a truly meaningful, cross-platform solution for women,” said SheKnows Media chief revenue and marketing officer of Samantha Skey.
Kaplow will start her new job on Feb. 29.