Food52 Appoints New Board Member and Three Executives to Lead People, Product, and Brand Partnerships Teams

NEW YORK, March 31, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Food52, the premier cooking and home brand, announced today the appointments of one new board member and three executives to its growing team, on the heels of a revenue-doubling 2020. Mike Smith joins Food52's Board of Directors, Katasha Harley joins Food52 as SVP and Head of People and Culture, Steve Jacobs joins as Chief Product Officer, and Matt Greenberg joins as SVP of Brand Partnerships.

Last year, Food52 saw record-breaking audience and revenue growth driven by the pandemic's effects on people's lives: They understood more deeply just how important it is to feel safe and comfortable at home and to be able to feed one's self and family. With its mission clearer than ever, Food52 is charging full speed ahead into 2021, bolstering its expansion with strong leadership. The company plans to grow its team by more than 50% this year.

Mike Smith joins Food52's Board of Directors, alongside founders Amanda Hesser and Merrill Stubbs and The Chernin Group's Mike Kerns and Mark Kamal. Mike is the General Partner and co-founder of Footwork, an early stage venture capital firm, and currently serves on the Board of Directors of public companies Stitch Fix, Herman Miller, and Ulta Beauty. Formerly, Mike was the President, Chief Operating Officer and interim Chief Financial Officer of Stitch Fix and from 2003 to 2012, he served in a variety of capacities at Walmart.com, including Vice President and Chief Operating Officer.

Katasha Harley joins Food52 as its first-ever SVP and Head of People and Culture, responsible for shaping company culture, engagement and DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion) strategies, and leading people operations, recruiting and performance enablement, among other functions. Katasha came from The New York Times, where she was Head of Talent Development and also a leader advising on its DEI strategy. Previously, she held progressive human resources positions at Elizabeth Arden, KIPP NYC Charter Schools, L'Oreal USA, and Time Warner.

Steve Jacobs joins Food52 as Chief Product Officer, leading the Product, Engineering, and Design teams. Most recently, Steve started Bright Parenting — an app that supports parents through early childhood development — which he sold to Maven in 2020. Before going out on his own, Steve was a Venture Partner at FirstMark Capital, an SVP of Digital Technology and Product at Hudson's Bay Company (HBC), and the Chief Product Officer at Gilt.

Matt Greenberg joins Food52 as SVP and Head of Brand Partnerships, bringing a wealth of experience across the advertising and marketing landscape. At Food52, Matt will be leading the Brand Partnerships team, a multifaceted department with expertise that extends beyond advertising into experiential, shopper marketing, media & tech, and content creation. Before Food52, Matt was the CRO of Advertising Week where he ran global revenue and partnerships.

"I am thrilled to be working alongside this group of exceptional leaders," says cofounder and CEO Amanda Hesser. "Our business is seeing tremendous momentum, and it's exciting to have so many talented partners who will help us shape the future and create a food and home company like no other."

Food52 is investing in seasoned talent as it continues to launch new channels including content verticals, a podcast network, a B2B arm including trade and corporate gifting programs, and buildouts in OTT and brand partnerships (like the launch of its first-party data platform). In addition to building its core team, Food52 also recently added a number of notable Residents to its slate of creators, including Sohla El-Waylly and Rick Martinez, as well as 20 others.

FOOD52

Food52 is a leading innovator in the food, cooking, and home space with a monthly reach of more than 25 million people. From the beginning, the brand challenged the models of traditional media companies and retailers, combining content, commerce, and community around the belief that the kitchen is the heart of the home and food is the center of a well-lived life. Food52 connects a global community of experts and amateurs, supporting them with inspirational, useful content — recipes, videos, podcasts, cookbooks and more — and outfitting them with products that make them happy. Amongst a highly curated Shop representing hundreds of makers, Five Two is Food52's own line of award-winning products for kitchen, home, and life, developed exclusively with the Food52 community, a strategy that led to Fast Company naming Food52 one of the world's most innovative companies in 2020. food52.com

SOURCE Food52