Vox Media Hires Former BuzzFeed Licensing Guru Eric Karp

Vox Media announced today that it has hired Eric Karp, formerly the svp of global brand licensing at BuzzFeed, as its new svp, brand licensing, an appointment that signals the growing product licensing ambitions of Vox Media. In his new role Karp will oversee the strategy, operations, profit and loss of Vox Media’s nascent product licensing business, which will span titles including New York Magazine, Vox, The Verge, The Cut and more. “I'm both a professional admirer and a personal consumer of Vox Media content, so it's special to be a custodian of a group of brands that you're also a fan of,” Karp said. The hire comes as publishers throughout the industry look to diversify their revenue streams, with many singling out commerce as a viable opportunity. Licensing, in particular, is almost all upside for publishers, as the licensee takes on almost no expense in the process yet receives a royalty payment for every product sold. Vox Media’s licensing ambitions Despite the strong brand identity of its 13 titles, Vox Media currently has no product licensing outside of a few collaborations, according to Karp. The lack of existing infrastructure has not deterred the svp, as there was no licensing business when he began at BuzzFeed in 2017. “We’re going to do here what we did well at BuzzFeed, which is to lean into insights and make sure that the subjective decisions around the prioritization of brands is backed up by audience interest,” Karp told Adweek. Karp will have a team and budget to work with, but declined to offer specifics. He will report to Vox Media president Pam Wasserstein. Three of the Vox Media brands are ready to begin licensing immediately Karp said, though he declined to name which titles he was referring to. He singled out lifestyle brands and any products associated with them, such as home goods, fashion and personal care, as potential revenue drivers. Karp helped BuzzFeed grow its commerce arm At BuzzFeed, Karp and his team of 10 played an integral role in the publisher’s ascent into a commerce juggernaut. In 2020, he helped Tasty, the food sub-brand of BuzzFeed, sell more than $250 million of branded merchandise in 2020. Karp also helped Tasty develop more than 250 licensed products and inked strategic partnerships with companies like Walmart, McCormick, Nestlé and General Mills. BuzzFeed CEO Jonah Peretti said in May that he wanted BuzzFeed to become “an inspiration engine” for commerce and touted the tight loop it had built between editorial and commerce. According to a presentation slideshow Peretti shared with investors in anticipation of its acquisition via SPAC, BuzzFeed generated $57 million in commerce revenue in 2020, or 13% of its total revenue. By 2024, BuzzFeed hopes to raise that number significantly, to $330 million, or 31% of its total revenue. Analysts have pegged such predictions as optimistic, but regardless BuzzFeed set the standard for publishers looking to make a foray into commerce. As the operator behind its licensing deals, Karp played a critical role in materializing Peretti’s ambitions, no doubt a role Vox Media hopes he can reprise for them. Tasty’s Licensing Partners Sold More Than $250 Million of Branded Merchandise in 2020

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Signaling Its Ambitions, Vox Media Hires Former BuzzFeed Licensing Guru Eric Karp

The move reflects the publisher's growing emphasis on commerce

Mark Stenberg

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