Thrillist
Thrillist is an online media website covering food, drink, travel and entertainment. The company was founded in 2004 and is based in New York City, United States. In October 2016, Thrillist merged with internet brands The Dodo, NowThis News, and Seeker[1] to form the digital media holding company Group Nine Media,[2] which was acquired by Vox Media in 2022.[3]
Type of site
Private
2004
Ben Lerer
Adam Rich
Meghan Kirsch (Chief Content Officer)
Helen Hollyman (Editor-in-Chief)
300+
Former business ventures[edit]
In May 2010, Thrillist acquired online men's fashion retailer JackThreads.[12]
In March 2011, TMG hired Eric Ashman as Chief Financial Officer from The Huffington Post.[13] In 2012, Ashman was charged with committing accounting fraud by the SEC while working as CFO at The Street and was "barred from acting as a director or officer of a public company for three years."[14]
In February 2012, Lerer announced the creation of the Thrillist Media Group (TMG), which combined Thrillist, deal site Thrillist Rewards, and JackThreads.[15] In August 2012, the media group led a $13 million fundraising round, from OAK, the Pilot Group, and Lerer Ventures.[16]
In March 2013, TMG discontinued Thrillist Rewards, citing slow growth, and also launched The Crosby Press, a site designed to market JackThreads products by providing content aimed at a target audience of men in their late teens to early twenties.[17] By May 2015, The Crosby Press had been closed by TMG.[18] In October 2013, TMG launched the tech site Supercompressor, which focused on gear and gadgets for a young male audience.[19] Supercompressor was discontinued as a site in September 2015.[20]
In September 2015, TMG announced it had raised $54 million in total from European publisher Axel Springer, Oak Investment Partners and SBNY. As part of the transaction, Thrillist separated its businesses, with Thrillist Media group operating the media site, Thrillist, while the e-commerce company operated JackThreads.[21]
In October 2016, TMG merged with The Dodo, NowThis News and Seeker to form Group Nine Media. The newly formed holding company received a $100 million strategic investment from Discovery, Inc.[22]
In February 2017, JackThreads laid off most of its staff in preparation to "cease operations as an independent company." A number of customers subsequently experienced problems with returns, canceled orders, and items that never shipped.[23]