BDG names Avi Zimak chief commercial officer in dual leadership shake-up. The media group also elevated Amber Estabrook to the role of chief business officer of prestige revenue and partnerships. 53 mins ago Social Media Week: SMW returns to NYC April 14 to 16, bringing together the people behind the feed to define what works now in social and content. Secure your spot today. The digital media company Bustle Digital Group has named media executive Avi Zimak as its chief commercial officer and promoted Amber Estabrook to chief business officer of prestige revenue and partnerships, the company shared with ADWEEK. Both executives will report to founder and chief executive Bryan Goldberg. Zimak brings more than 25 years of experience across digital media, advertising technology, and premium publishing. In his new role, he will oversee BDG's global commercial strategy, spanning sales, branded and video partnerships, events, and revenue operations, across a portfolio that includes Nylon, Bustle, and Elite Daily. He joins from Perion, where he served as chief growth officer. Before that, Zimak served as the chief revenue and strategy officer at The Arena Group and chief revenue officer and publisher at New York Magazine. Estabrook, who has spent six years building W's prestige advertising business, will step into an expanded role overseeing high-end partnership revenue across BDG's broader portfolio. She will continue to lead W as publisher and maintain oversight of the brand's European offices in Milan and Paris. W, which is operated in partnership with BDG, has posted double-digit year-over-year print growth, according to the company. The moves come as BDG enters what Goldberg has described as a new commercial chapter. After years of restructuring, including shuttering brands like Gawker and Mic and significantly scaling back written editorial, the company has repositioned itself around live events and influencer marketing. Last year, its first-half revenue was up 25% year over year, with the company targeting a 10% profit margin on nine-figure revenue for the full year. Given their backgrounds, Zimak and Estabrook appear poised to serve that strategy. Zimak's experience scaling multi-platform revenue organizations suits BDG's diversified monetization model, while Estabrook's luxury relationships position the company to capture higher-end ad dollars as it expands its events footprint. "BDG has built a truly unique media ecosystem where culture, audience, and brand partnership intersect," Zimak said in a statement. Mark Stenberg is ADWEEK's senior media reporter. Recommended videos

The Arena Group launches dedicated marketplace on Index Marketplaces, expanding access to premium, brand-safe advertising inventory. Brands and agencies can access curated, brand-safe supply through one of the first publisher-led marketplaces on Index Marketplaces, powered by The Arena Group's portfolio of premium lifestyle and finance brands NEW YORK-(BUSINESS WIRE)-The Arena Group Holdings, Inc (NYSE American: AREN) today announced the launch of a dedicated marketplace on Index Marketplaces, powered by Index Exchange - one of the world's largest independent supply-side platforms - becoming one of the first publishers to activate this offering. This initiative expands access to premium, brand-safe advertising inventory that directly connects advertisers with The Arena Group's influential brands including Parade, Men's Journal and TheStreet. The Arena Group's deep audience engagement and data-driven publishing expertise now connects with Index Exchange's extensive network of over 3,000 media owners across display, video, mobile app, and streaming TV. The new marketplace offers agencies and brands a powerful way to reach highly engaged audiences in trusted, contextually relevant environments, all without standard minimum investment requirements. "This partnership with Index Exchange enhances how advertisers connect with our premium audiences while maintaining transparency and efficiency," said Megan Hong, Sr. Director, Partner & Yield Management at The Arena Group. "Together, we're making it easier for brands to access high-quality placements across our lifestyle, finance, and culture verticals, powered by our data insights and leading digital platform." A dedicated Arena Group Marketplace via Index Marketplaces allows marketers to: * Showcase unique creative within customized rich media units designed to drive KPIs * Maintain full control over media packages and audience segmentation with no spend minimums * Activate deal IDs to match audiences with tailored inventory * Maximize campaign efficiency with no additional platform fees * Access transparent performance reporting "Media buyers are increasingly seeking scale and precision in brand-safe environments," said Max Caukin, Senior Director of Marketplaces at Index Exchange. "Through Index Marketplaces, The Arena Group offers marketers direct access to some of the most trusted digital destinations in lifestyle and finance, enabling meaningful consumer connections through premium, contextually-aligned content." Marketers can now activate campaigns across Index Exchange's inventory through a streamlined workflow, combining audience-specific activation and optimization with The Arena Group's premium publisher reach. About The Arena Group The Arena Group Holdings, Inc. (NYSE American: AREN) is an innovative technology platform and media company with a proven cutting-edge playbook that transforms media brands. Our unified technology platform empowers creators and publishers with tools to publish and monetize their content, while also leveraging quality journalism of anchor brands like TheStreet, Parade, Men's Journal and Athlon Sports to build their businesses. The company aggregates content across a diverse portfolio of brands, reaching over 100 million users monthly. Visit us at thearenagroup.net and discover how we are revolutionizing the world of digital media. About Index Exchange Index Exchange is a global advertising supply-side platform enabling media owners to maximize the value of their content on any screen. We're a proud industry pioneer with over 20 years of experience connecting leading experience makers with the world's largest brands to ensure a quality experience for consumers. To learn more, visit: www.indexexchange.com or follow us on LinkedIn.

Arena Group acquires ShopHQ to revive a once-major online retailer. The Arena Group Holdings, Inc. is moving deeper into digital commerce with the acquisition of the intellectual property of ShopHQ, the once-dominant television and online retailer that generated more than $500 million in annual revenue at its peak. Arena Group and ShopHQ announced the acquisition deal Oct. 17, 2025. It transfers ShopHQ's brand and first-party customer data from IV Media, LLC to Arena Group. That sets the stage for a revival built around live and social commerce rather than traditional broadcast retailing. Arena Group CEO Paul Edmondson said the company intends to use ShopHQ's extensive data trove and brand recognition to create "pools of first-party data sets" and merge commerce with the media network's digital reach. Arena's properties include TheStreet, Parade and formerly Sports Illustrated. It claims to engage millions of readers across its publishing network every day. "The bridge we're building between data, brands and users has enormous potential," Edmondson said in announcing the deal. Arena Group acquisition of ShopHQ. Under Arena's ownership, ShopHQ will re-emerge as a digital-first marketplace accessible through social channels, YouTube and its website. The company plans to rely on a drop-ship-based inventory model, avoiding the burden of holding merchandise. It wants to emphasize creator-led selling, using hosts and influencers to drive engagement and conversion. "ShopHQ has a loyal customer base that we're eager to re-engage with trusted brands and experts," said Jessica Gregory, general manager of ShopHQ. "Combining Arena's capabilities with live selling and commerce content will enable ShopHQ to excite current customers while engaging and converting new ones." For Arena, the acquisition marks a strategic shift toward monetizing audiences through commerce as the digital advertising market grows increasingly competitive. By integrating a recognizable retail brand with rich customer data into its media ecosystem, Arena aims to offer advertisers precision targeting and create new revenue streams that go beyond display ads and subscriptions. Previous ownership changes. The move also revives a storied retail name that has cycled through decades of transformation and turbulence. ShopHQ began life in 1991 as ValueVision. It was one of the early pioneers of televised home shopping. It became ShopNBC in the early 2000s under NBC's ownership stake, later rebranded as EVINE Live. Then, it returned to the ShopHQ name in 2019. Its parent, iMedia Brands Inc., filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2023. That led to a sale of assets to IV Media, a subsidiary of Innovation Ventures LLC. Innovation Ventures is best known as the maker of 5-Hour Energy. Despite an attempt to pivot toward streaming and online live selling, ShopHQ shuttered its network operations earlier this year. Arena itself has had a tumultuous run. The New York- based media company is formerly known as TheMaven. It built its business by acquiring and licensing established publishing brands, including TheStreet and Parade, and by operating Sports Illustrated under license from Authentic Brands Group. That partnership unraveled in 2024 amid payment disputes and leadership turnover. Majority control of Arena now belongs to 5-Hour Energy founder Manoj Bhargava, whose Simplify Inventions acquired a 65% stake in 2023. By bringing ShopHQ under the same ownership umbrella, Bhargava is effectively combining two of his portfolio's strengths - consumer brand marketing and large-scale media distribution - into one commerce-driven platform. If the integration succeeds, Arena could transform ShopHQ's dormant customer base into an engine for data-driven retail, where editorial content, influencer storytelling, and on-demand shopping converge. The challenge will be execution. Reviving a legacy home-shopping brand in an era dominated by Amazon, TikTok Shop, and YouTube Shopping will require agility, fresh creative direction and seamless operations. Yet for Arena, still rebuilding its footing after the loss of Sports Illustrated, ShopHQ offers something it has lacked: a path from audience attention to direct consumer spending - and a chance to prove that content and commerce can, at last, share the same stage.