Anna Jones is stepping down as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) in 2017 to co-found AllBright, the ground-breaking funding platform dedicated to sourcing, nurturing and backing the most outstanding female-led companies in the UK. She will also become Executive Chairman of ShareStyle, a digital marketplace for style services.
For further information about AllBright and how it works, click here
Jones completes her tenure as CEO of Hearst after five years with the company and significant accomplishments, to co-found AllBright with Debbie Wosskow, serial entrepreneur and CEO at Love Home Swap.
During her time as CEO, Jones transformed Hearst, implementing an ambitious diversification strategy that created the category’s largest digital publisher by audience reach.
Jones launched new divisions such as the experiential and events-focused ‘Hearst Live’ (responsible for consumer events like ‘Cosmo FashFest’ and ‘Red’s Smart Women Week’); as well as ‘Hearst Made’, a content marketing division which provides editorial content for the likes of ASDA, P&G and Jamie Oliver magazine.
She oversaw a strategy that elevated brands to market leader positions; Cosmopolitan was relaunched to become the biggest-selling women’s glossy magazine in the UK, whilst the development of Good Housekeeping magazine made it the highest-selling lifestyle title in the UK and the Good Housekeeping Institute evolved into a state-of-the-art testing and events venue, winning many accolades, such as PPA Media Brand of the Year.
Among Jones’ personal highlights was kick-starting ‘Hearst Empowering Women’, an initiative spanning all Hearst’s brands that became an online destination and events program to inform and inspire women to live the lives they choose. It was this project and passion for championing women that led Anna to co-found her new venture.
Anna Jones comments: “Hearst has an incredible reach in the UK – talking to one in three British women – and this gave me an amazing opportunity to be inspired by women and to gain a wider understanding of what makes us tick. In particular, I saw how many women wanted to start and run their own businesses but didn’t feel they had the right finance or support to do so.
AllBright has been created to address this issue.
“I’m also thrilled to be taking on the role of Executive Chairman at ShareStyle, an incredibly innovative company that Debbie Wosskow and I have invested in. I have met and worked with hugely talented people across the media industry during my career and I hope I will continue to work with them in both my new roles. ShareStyle will give creatives a showcase and route to market and AllBright the investment and support for those budding entrepreneurs.
“It will be hard to say goodbye to Hearst, it’s an incredible business full of talented people and outstanding brands, but after many years running a large company I’m looking forward to becoming a female founder myself.”
For further information about AllBright and how it works, click here