Hearst UK announces new leadership team and key senior appointments
Hearst UK has announced its new Leadership team, which sees four key external hires and four internal moves to newly created positions. The changes are designed to drive long-term sustainable growth for the business behind brands including Good Housekeeping, ELLE, Harper’s Bazaar, Country Living, Women’s Health and Esquire.
The new Leadership roles include an MD Clients; MD Commercial Operations UK & Global; Chief Customer Officer; Chief Transformation Officer; MD Brand Diversification; MD Good Housekeeping/Good Housekeeping Institute; MD Brand Portfolio; and MD Content. As well as the Good Housekeeping division, Hearst UK has also organised around its brands with the creation of five new portfolios: Luxury, Health & Wellness, Homes, Women’s Lifestyle and Entertainment.
Ben Chesters, previously Hearst UK’s Head of Agency Sales, UK & Global, was appointed MD Clients in August 2023 with overall responsibility for the business’s client growth strategy and agency development. Chesters also oversees Hearst Global Solutions, providing partnership opportunities across all markets where the business operates.
Gianluca Ena, previously Chief Commercial Operations Director, was made MD Commercial Operations UK & Global in July 2023. Ena leads client success and commercial operations at both a local and global level.
David Robinson was named Chief Customer Officer in October 2023 with the remit of driving multi-product, multi-channel subscriptions growth and leading customer marketing and data. Robinson is also responsible for Hearst UK’s Health & Wellness portfolio (Women’s Health, Men’s Health and Runner’s World). He has previously worked for market-leading organisations such as News UK and BBC Studios, and held roles including Managing Director of The Sun, Customer Retention Director at The Times and Sunday Times, and Publisher of Radio Times.
Elizabeth Minshaw was appointed Chief Transformation Officer in March 2023 with a mandate of commercialising new ideas and spearheading growth initiatives. Minshaw also oversees Hearst UK’s Entertainment portfolio (Digital Spy, best and Inside Soap). She joined from Condé Nast where she was Chief of Staff based in New York, and has a wealth of experience from working at companies including The Wall Street Journal and The Times.
Sharon Douglas was named MD Brand Diversification in July 2023 with responsibility for areas including eCommerce, licensing and branded products. Douglas joined Hearst UK in 2004, and has held roles including Chief Brand Officer – Lifestyle, New Business Development Director and Customer Sales & Marketing Director.
Liz Moseley joined Hearst UK as MD Good Housekeeping/Good Housekeeping Institute in September 2023 and is responsible for the overall direction of the brand. 2024 is a landmark year for the Institute as it celebrates its 100thanniversary with a host of events, strategic developments and a dedicated consumer research survey. Moseley has held senior marketing positions at The Telegraph and The Times, and is the former publisher of Heat. She was also Chief Marketing Officer for Ascential plc and Partner and Editor at Tortoise Media.
Celine Gilg will join the business as MD Brand Portfolio on 1st March from PUIG, where she is Managing Director for UK and Ireland. Gilg will be responsible for leading the overarching strategy and direction for Hearst UK’s Luxury (ELLE, ELLE Decoration, Esquire and Harper’s Bazaar), Homes (Country Living and House Beautiful) and Women’s Lifestyle (Cosmopolitan, Prima and Red) portfolios. She has 25 years’ marketing and management experience from global beauty companies including L’Oréal, Guerlain and Estée Lauder.
Toby Wiseman was appointed MD Content in August 2023, and his role is pivotal in driving Hearst UK’s strategy for growth, ensuring quality and consistency of its trusted output. Prior to this, Wiseman spent 18 years as Editor-in-Chief of Men’s Health.
Katie Vanneck-Smith, CEO of Hearst UK, said: “I’m excited to have our full Leadership team in place as we supercharge our efforts to identify new revenue opportunities and use the power of our world-class, trusted brands to deepen our direct relationships with customers and clients. 2024 will be a pivotal year for Hearst UK, and we are laser-focused on delivering long-term sustainable growth.”
Jonathan Wright, president of Hearst Magazines International, said: “We are excited about the team Katie has assembled to implement a strategy that is designed to drive long-term growth for the UK business.”
Hearst UK’s Leadership team is completed by Julien Litzelmann, Chief Finance Officer; Surinder Simmons, Chief People Officer; Aimee Nisbet, Head of Legal; and Alison Forth, Director of PR & Communications.
