Bustle Publisher Revenue Drops 10% as CPG and Parenting Brands Falter

Media company Bustle Digital Group—home to a portfolio of lifestyle publishers including Nylon, Bustle and Fatherly—is on pace to generate between $136 million and $144 million in revenue this year, according to three people familiar with its commercial health. The revenue range represents a 10% to 15% decline from 2022, when BDG generated $160 million in revenue, according to three sources. A representative for BDG confirmed the news. The loss will be the first time in a decade that BDG has dropped in revenue year over year, chief revenue officer and president Jason Wagenheim said on a September episode of The Rebooting podcast. “This is not a great year,” Wagenheim said on the podcast. “It’s the weirdest, most volatile time I’ve experienced in almost 30 years of doing this, to be honest.” Exclusive: BuzzFeed Inc. Announces Strategic Shift, Longtime Publisher Steps Down With only a handful of exceptions, media companies in every sector have struggled to grow revenue in 2023. Now, a lackluster fourth quarter has prompted yet another round of layoffs across the industry, as publishers including Vox Media, G/O Media, Condé Nast, Recurrent Ventures and The Washington Post are all amid reductions. Advertising woes, Hollywood strikes and CPG challenges According to three sources, several factors contributed to the dropoff in revenue. The ongoing malaise of the digital advertising sector has led to budget cuts, closures and layoffs across the industry, resulting in more than 20,000 layoffs this year through October, according to executive outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas. BDG has been no exception: Earlier this year, it shuttered Gawker after clearing house at Mic and closing Input. The company generates 85% to 90% of its revenue from advertising, 85% of which comes from branded content and 15% of which comes from traditional media, according to a source familiar with its finances. The Verge’s Dramatic Redesign Boosts Loyalty Even as Readership Dwindles BDG has also seen its advertising business affected by the writers’ and actors’ strikes that paralyzed Hollywood for months, according to two people familiar with the situation. Marketing spend from the entertainment sector, which represents around 10% of its advertising business, declined. And the labor stoppages forced BDG to cancel key events, such as its activation at the Venice Film Festival, hampering revenue growth. Additionally, the company divides its advertising business into two broad categories—luxury and fashion, and consumer packaged goods and parenting—and the latter has struggled throughout the year, according to two people familiar with the matter. BDG titles that cater to luxury advertisers—such as Nylon, Bustle and W Magazine—have performed solidly, according to two people familiar with the matter. But those in its parenting and consumer goods portfolio—such as Elite Daily, Scary Mommy and Fatherly—have fared poorly. The saturated nature of the CPG space has challenged BDG, which entered into the parenting sector in 2021 with its $150 million acquisition of Some Spider Studios, according to two people familiar with the matter. The increasing dominance of retail media giants, particularly Walmart and Amazon, has also made CPG budgets more contested. Shifts in strategy and personnel BDG has embarked on a handful of commercial and editorial pivots to better position the company. The media company plans to prioritize selling advertising by brand rather than as an aggregated network, a strategy similar to a pivot recently adopted by BuzzFeed Inc., according to a source. As social media and search platforms have throttled referral traffic, publishers have responded by focusing more on cultivating loyal readers and selling directly to sponsors. Editorially, BDG plans to focus less on the volume of content and place greater emphasis on fewer, more focused editorial projects. Experiential activations have also become a larger focus of its business. The brand has invested in building out its presence at key cultural touchpoints, including Art Basel, Coachella and New York Fashion Week. Notably, Wagenheim, who has served at the company for seven years, will be leaving BDG early next year to become North American CEO of the soccer media company Footballco. BDG plans to fill his role in the first quarter of next year, and it is considering both internal and external candidates, according to a source familiar with its hiring strategy. It plans to focus on candidates with expertise in the CPG and parenting space to help shore up those sectors. The company also plans to reduce headcount across its sales and business teams before the end of the year. However, the layoffs will represent fewer than 5% of total headcount, according to a person familiar with the matter. No editorial cuts are planned.

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Bustle Publisher Revenue Drops 10% as CPG and Parenting Brands Falter

The company will bring in between $136 million and $144 million in 2023

Mark Stenberg

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Mark Stenberg