Interview: Christie Hefner: ‘Change Will Be Good For The Company’
I’d hoped to see Christie Hefner in New York Tuesday, where she was supposed to lead Playboy’s presentation at the UBS Global Media and Communications conference. Instead, she was in Chicago when we spoke by phone a day after her surprising announcement that, after two decades heading the family business, she was stepping down as chairman of Playboy Enterprises (NYSE: PLA) immediately and as CEO at the end of January. From Chicago, Hefner talked about her reasons for leaving, restructuring PEI, relaunching Playboy.com and more.
Lots more after the jump…
—Why now?: Call it the Obama factor. Hefner said she spent the last two years working for a campaign based on change and now wants to experience that for herself. Barack Obama’s election coincides with a stronger position for PEI, which adds to her sense that the timing is right.
—Defining success: When I asked about the impression that Playboy hadn’t managed to deliver on its promise in recent years, Hefner replied: “I think it depends on what period of time you’re looking at.” She spoke of the company’s demonstrable success building digital media before “almost anyone else” and how the company “is poised for further growth especially as more markets open up, whether it’s India, Russia, Brazil.” The toughest measure of success in today’s market? The stock price, she said: “In terms of the stock, a lot of people made a lot of money over time following the company.” (Playboy went public in 1971; Hefner led a re-capitalization in 1990 that created two classes of stock.) Today, “a lot of companies in the media space are trading at an all-time low. ... This year has been a challenging year and we knew that going in.”
—On relaunching Playboy.com: Hefner says the upcoming relaunch of Playboy.com will have “much more robust content on the free site than we’ve done before.” It reflects Playboy’s shift from the days when adult content equaled premium to a mix that moves the site closer to the mainstream. Unlike its more explicit competition Penthouse and Hustler, Playboy has so far survived the transition to a time when adult content is freely available online. Free access to explicit content online is a “big problem for the adult DVD business, for the adult movie business,” Hefner explains, but says it isn’t holding back Playboy.
—On restructuring: Hefner wanted to make sure the restructuring of PEI was complete before a new CEO came on: “I felt that it was not fair if we knew we were going to go through a major restructuring and have 100 fewer employees than last year.” The $6.3 million in charges for the moves obscured what would have been a return to profitability in Q3 with $1.1 million in net income.
—On print’s survival: Does Hefner expect Playboy the magazine to cut frequency in the next couple of years? “I think time will tell what the right frequency and the right rate is.” Hefner is convinced that the glossy, singular magazines like Playboy, Vanity Fair and others will survive: “I believe they’ll be around in three years and five years and 10 years and 15 years.”
—Separating top corporate jobs: Hefner was promoted to both jobs from president in 1988; she’d been with the company since 1975 and will be a major shareholder. Jerome Kern took on the role of non-executive chairman with her announcement. Does she believe the two jobs should be separate, a course some companies have been taking to keep one person from having too much power? “I think it varies, I think sometimes it works well with one.” She said she expects the board to make that assessment after her successor is found.”
—Can someone be CEO for too long?: Hefner: “I don’t know that there’s any rule of thumb. ... For some, one year is too long. ... I do think the change is good and will be good for the company.”
Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/people/83047803@N00”>Jeremy Pepper
Related Stories
@sdkstl
Dec 10, 2008 4:01 PM ET
Posted In: Entertainment, Adult, Media & Publishing, Magazines, christie hefner, playboy
Newsletter
