According to Shortlist Media: Never Underdressed is a new digital, multi-platform, glossy fashion and beauty title that combines the high-gloss production values of monthly fashion magazines with the hourly speed and immediacy of the web. Using responsive web design, Never Underdressed provides the same rich, multimedia and advertiser experience across desktop, tablet and mobile. It will be live from May 2013, on www.NeverUnderdressed.com
The new brand has been developed in response to the changing way that women around the world consume fashion. While established monthly fashion magazines have seen their sales plateau, the proliferation of retail sites has created a new and frequent way for women to enjoy fashion and beauty. Increasingly sophisticated smartphones and tablets have also created a demand to consume this content on the move, with 50% of smartphone owners accessing the mobile internet multiple times a day.
Never Underdressed is created by an editorial and publishing team with a strong track record in fashion and beauty in print and digital, having previously held senior positions on brands such as Elle, Vogue, Marie Claire, The Independent, Stella and Sunday Times Style.
The 14-strong editorial team is led by Carrie Tyler (pictured on the left). Until recently the Digital Director of Elle, Carrie is an industry leader in the production, development and strategy of digital fashion and beauty content across multiple platforms. Winner of Outstanding Team Leadership of the Year at the PPA Digital Awards 2012, Carrie has spent 14 years working in the industry on daily, weekly and monthly titles.
Publisher is Lucy Alexander (pictured on the right). Lucy will be responsible for publishing strategy and commercial partnerships and activity across all platforms. The former Digital Ad Director of Elle, Lucy has worked in the digital fashion market for 10 years.
Lucy says: “Never Underdressed is a beautiful, glossy, luxury fashion title for the digital era.
We are thrilled to bring a range of innovative, immersive new advertising formats that extend across desktop, tablet and mobile and allow brands to deliver consistent, high-impact campaigns across all platforms simultaneously.”
Carrie says: “I’m delighted to be able to bring such a stellar team together to create what is the most ambitious digital fashion and beauty brand this country has ever seen. We are committed to not only delivering the best and most original content but also to significantly out-perform the market on the number of stories we cover and the depth and breadth of our reporting.”
Key appointments to the team include:
Ursula Lake has been appointed Fashion Director. Ursula has worked as a Fashion Editor for 15 years and was contributing Fashion Editor at The Sunday Telegraph’s Stella magazine for seven years. She has also contributed to Net-A-Porter and Matches online magazines. She launched swimwear label Violet Lake in 2010, which she continues to design.
Miranda Almond has been appointed Contributing Fashion Editor. Miranda was Fashion Editor of British Vogue for 8 years. She now regularly contributes to American Vogue, Elle UK, Elle China and US InStyle.
Joanna McGarry has been appointed Beauty Director. Formerly Beauty Director of Stylist magazine where she transformed its pages into an award-winning destination for beauty. Joanna was awarded Best Weekly Beauty Journalist as well as Beauty Journalist of the Year at the prestigious Johnson & Johnson Beauty Journalism Awards in January 2013.
Harriet Walker has been appointed News Editor. Previously Style Editor and a columnist at The Independent, Harriet writes for magazines including Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, Elle and The Gentlewoman. She has also written two books on fashion and appears regularly as a commentator on broadcast media.
Kelly Bowerbank has been appointed Assistant Editor. Kelly is a digital fashion specialist with expertise in building engaged online communities, designing social media strategies and delivering seamless user journeys. Before joining Never Underdressed she developed, launched and edited ASOS’s innovative social shopping platform, Fashion Finder.
Rozana Hall has been appointed Ad Director. Previously Head of International Fashion at Marie Claire, Marie Claire Runway and marieclaire.co.uk, Rozana will be responsible for implementing the digital commercial strategy and leading the newly formed ad team. Rozana will also oversee all International Fashion business on the new brand.
Mike Soutar, Chief Executive of Shortlist Media Ltd, says: “Never Underdressed is a hugely ambitious and exciting launch for us. The months of research we have devoted to the development of the new service leave me in no doubt that we will be bringing a genuinely distinctive and valuable brand to the market. Credit is due to the senior team here whose determination has seen us reach this new milestone: Tim Ewington, our Strategy Director; Karl Marsden, Managing Director; Phil Hilton, Editorial Director and Matt Phare, Creative Director. Their vision and drive is awe-inspiring.”
