Updated: Industry Moves: Former MSLO CEO Susan Lyne Takes Top Job At Invite-Only Gilt; Lyne Talks
After a wave of speculation as to where she would land after resigning as president and CEO of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia (NYSE: MSO) in June, Susan Lyne has been named CEO of Gilt Groupe, an online retailer of discounted luxury items. The e-commerce site is open to customers by invitation-only. Gilt is part of Alley Corp, the online holding company founded by Kevin Ryan and Dwight Merriman, the former CEO and CTO of DoubleClick, respectively.
Lyne’s move seems surprising, because of her extensive background in entertainment and media. Before heading MSLO in the fall of 2004, Lyne was president of ABC Entertainment in charge of the network’s primetime programming and had been with the network since 1996. The company announcement of Lyne’s hire gave no indication as to whether Gilt would try to move into content creation or curation in some way. At Gilt, Lyne takes over for Alexis Maybank, the company’s founder. Maybank will remain on as chief strategy officer.
Staci adds: Just got off the phone with Susan Lyne, who is amused by the surprise factor. “I told everyone I’m not going to do what you think I’m going to do.” So why Gilt rather than Oprah or any of the other options floating around? “I was completely won over by the energy and growth at Gilt Groupe.” The current media environment played a role, too. “There’s so much uncertainty and fear in the media marketplace right now, a lot of slowing growth, advertising is a tough revenue stream at the moment. But you look at a company like Gilt (commerce and the internet) ... And it’s a different story.” For Lyne, whose most recent employers were Martha Stewart and ABC, it’s also a different size and, as a premium-only site for now, a different concept. When I mentioned how much smaller, she laughed and replied: “It is now.” Gilt has a staff of about 70 now with 40 positions open. For her, the choice was between being at the top of a company “where the hard work has been done” or “what is going to get me up in the morning excited.” Lyne became a Gilt customer before she started talking about the job seriously. What’s next? Lyne isn’t going into detail but I wouldn’t be surprised to see some options that move beyond the current members-only concept—possibly a new level or other ways of opening the gilt gates a bit. Lyne did say she would be exploring media partnerships—private sales, special events and the like. As for producing media, Gilt is already getting into content like with Fashion Week. Expect more.
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Comments (1)
Oct 14, 2008 2:45 PM
Good for Susan Lyne. Better to build something from the group up, even with Gilt’s eBay and Bulgari/fashion heritage, then to get stuck on a traditional corp’s downsized exec suite due to the market.
I recently became a Gilt member—love the pun possibilities with this premium luxury ecommerce site—and find its model interesting. Would like to see what their average item inventory is and if the waiting lists ever work out for users. Could use some exclusive social media trappings, too. Definitely on my radar, as the ultra rich (and their acolytes) start getting more sophisticated with their digital behavior.