Quantcast
| Apr 19, 2012 |
Jason Binn/Gilt build team for new DU JOUR mag venture
Boh staff
By Staff

Jason Binn, founder and former CEO of Niche Media, announced the leadership team of industry talent in editorial, publishing, and technology to launch his latest venture, DU JOUR, in Fall 2012. This multi-platform digital and print publication, developed and executed in collaboration with Gilt Groupe and James Cohen of Hudson News and Dufry, will target three million of Gilt’s top-tier members, an audience responsible for spending in excess of $600 million annually.

On the editorial side, Keith Pollock and Nicole Vecchiarelli will serve as Co-Editors-in-Chief, overseeing both  print and digital content.

Pollock, who was editorial director of Elle.com, built that site’s monthly traffic from 240,000 monthly unique hits when he joined in 2007, to more than 2.4 million hits in 2008, according to ComScore. After moving to Brant publishing group to launch websites for publications including Interview and Art in America, he returned to Elle in 2010 in a bigger role, preparing the site for the merger between Hachette Filipacchi Media and Hearst Corp., and presiding over the launch of the first-ever fashion magazine iPad app. Since his return, Elle.com has become the highest-traffic site within the Hearst fashion category, and the number one revenue generator among digital properties within the Hearst portfolio.

Nicole Vecchiarelli comes to DU JOUR from InStyle magazine, where she was Senior Editor, reporting directly to Editor-in-Chief Ariel Foxman. In her leadership role there, Vecciarelli helped grow the publication’s strategic relationship with the entertainment community and instituted best practices for leveraging the magazine’s print content online. Vecchiarelli previously spent ten years at Condé Nast as Entertainment Director at Teen Vogue and Details.

According to Binn, “Keith and Nicole will raise the bar for style and sensibility in this industry, helping to redefine what a modern on- and offline magazine can be, and inspiring an audience that is second to none. I am excited to have them as partners and to leverage their skills, experience, and long-standing success record to bring my partners’ and my year-long vision to life.”

On the publishing side, Alan Katz has been named Chief Revenue Officer. Katz rose to fame as Publisher of New York Magazine in 1999, generating over $100 million in revenue annually prior to his departure. He then became founding Publisher of Cargo, whose premiere issue was the largest men’s launch in history, and exceeded Condé Nast’s launch plan by 67%. Katz also served as VP/Publisher of Vanity Fair and Group Publisher of Interview, Art in America, and Antiques. He’s also held senior management positions at MyTime.com, and, most recently, at Direct Brands, the home to the Book of the Month Club, Columbia Home Video, and the former BMG Music Club — which generates $500 million annually.

Working side by side with him will be VP of Sales Cynthia Lewis. She spent 12 years at Hearst, where she served as founding Associate Publisher and then VP/Publisher of Marie Claire, consistently delivering year-over-year revenue growth. She then served as VP/Publisher of Harper’s Bazaar, and later launched SHOP etc. Most recently, she founded Create Lucrative Relationships (CLR), which developed strategic sales and marketing programs to grow online and print revenues for clients including First Comes Fashion, The Daily Front Row, and Bergdorf Goodman. Before starting CLR she served as President of Latina Media Ventures (LMV), an exclusive multi-media company targeting bicultural Hispanic females, a group that represents the largest subset of the fastest growing segment of the US population.

In addition, Max McDonnell will serve as Associate VP of Product Development. McDonnell was formerly CEO of Lonnymag.com, the online shelter publication. Binn is also working directly with Brandon Ralph from digital shop Code & Theory who worked for Vogue.com and Tina Brown for The Daily Beast — to help build DU JOUR’s website and mobile apps.

As a national magazine with targeted local content, DU JOUR will connect digital and print media, with hopes of bridging the gap between content and commerce.

It will be an ABC-audited, monthly digital publication reaching over three million of the most affluent consumers, coupled with a quarterly, oversized, glossy print magazine with 250,000 print copies available by subscription. An additional 15,000 copies prominently displayed at premium newsstands in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Miami, Dallas, Las Vegas, and San Francisco in addition to seasonal regions, like the Hamptons, Aspen, and Sun Valley.

Editorial will cover the worlds of fashion, travel, fine dining, gourmet, beauty, night life, jewelry, accessories, watches, art, entertainment, business, culture, home, real estate, entertaining, health, spirits, beverages, technology, finance, sports, and politics — ultimately shaping the lifestyle that ties these categories together.

The magazine will target transactional readers who meet an average net worth of $5 million+; liquid assets over $1 million; average home values in excess of $1.5 million; average income in excess of $250,000; annual offline transactional luxury purchases of $100,000+; $10,000+ online high-end purchases annually; annual philanthropic donations over $10,000.

    MORE:
Want to stay informed? Sign up for our newsletter, which recaps the week’s stories, and get in-depth industry news and analysis each quarter by subscribing to our print magazine. Join BOH Insider for discounts, workshops and access to special events such as the Future of Home conference.
Jobs
Jobs