SheKnows Buys BlogHer, Expanding Its Reach Among Women

SheKnows, a digital-media company that publishes articles and videos aimed at women, has acquired the blogging network BlogHer, according to the companies. The acquisition expands SheKnow's digital audience and makes it more attractive to advertisers. Although the companies did not disclose the sale price, a person familiar with the matter said the deal is worth between $30 and $40 million. SheKnows.com, the company's flagship site, publishes content on a range of topics, including entertainment, food, health and parenting. The company, which is headquartered in Scottsdale, Ariz., is owned by the private equity firm Great Hill Partners. In August, SheKnows extended its reach by acquiring StyleCaster, a group of fashion and beauty sites. Advertisers with SheKnows include Kellogg's, P&G, Clorox, Pepsi, Unilever and Macy's. Philippe Guelton, CEO of SheKnows, wouldn't detail how much revenue the company attracts but said next year he expects the company to be "very close" to its goal of $100 million in revenue. BlogHer is a network of blogs written mostly by women, as well as an annual conference that attracts thousands of people. The event, now in its 11th year, will continue after the acquisition, taking place in New York next year. BlogHer's co-founders -- Lisa Stone, Elisa Camahort Page and Jory Des Jardins -- will also assume executive positions at SheKnows. "We have the same vision and same values of empowering women," Mr. Guelton said. SheKnows employs about 160 people -- it has roughly doubled staff in the last 18 months -- which will swell to 200 after the acquisition of BlogHer. "Together, we will extend our reach to just about every corner of the women's web," Ms. Stone added. The competition for women on the web is crowded with big players including AOL, Conde Nast, Meredith, Hearst and Scripps. The SheKnows network of sites attracted 36.4 million unique visitors across desktop and mobile devices in September, according to ComScore. That made it the eighth most-visited media entity in ComScore's lifestyle category. (SheKnows.com attracted 9.7 million unique visitors across desktop and mobile devices in September.) BlogHer, which drew 43.6 million unique visitors, was fifth on the list. SheKnows might not carry the same weight among fashionistas or moms as a Vogue, Refinery29 or Parenting magazine, but it does have about 500 writers it calls experts on a range of topics, part of a program called "Experts Among Us." One woman, for instance, writes about untangling jewelry. The BlogHer network broadens this base of writers. "This isn't chaotic user-generated content," said Katie Ford, president-managing director at media buying-and-planning agency MediaVest. "It's well produced." Media buyers said they like the size of SheKnows as well as its recent efforts to expand its coverage areas, particularly through the acquisition of StyleCaster. SheKnows' willingness to develop content for brands through "Experts Among Us" is especially attractive, they added. About 35% of SheKnows revenue is branded content, the company said. And roughly 70% of its business includes a branded-content component. "From the buy side, that makes it a really interesting proposition to work with them," Ms. Ford said. "We can tap into this amazing community." "Couple that with BlogHer and they're going to have an edge on the overall marketplace because they'll have women, with points of view, over various topics," she added. ~ ~ ~CORRECTION: An earlier version of this article said SheKnows Media was the ninth most-visited media entity in ComScore's lifestyle category during the month of September. It was the eighth most-visited.

SheKnows Buys BlogHer, Expanding Its Reach Among Women

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