On March 1 of this year, our Editor in Chief, Memoree Joelle, and her business partner Gaye Chapman, acquired AfterEllen from its previous owners, Evolve Media. The two women purchased the site for their newly-formed company, Lesbian Nation, LLC, which is based out of Los Angeles. This exchange has been a joyous business endeavor on both sides, as Evolve Media has played an extraordinary role in making sure AfterEllen would find a good home, and we are grateful and pleased they did their part in saving the site back in 2014 when it was nearly folded by Viacom. In 2016, Evolve Media hired Joelle as editor, and even amid necessary cutbacks, the site flourished and became ready for sale early this year.
Aaron Broder, CEO of Evolve Media, says the sale was a careful decision that he feels confident was a sound one.
“After careful consideration of our business options, we felt it made the most sense to sell After Ellen to a buyer who can spend more resources and energy on this iconic web property. While it was not without challenges, we are proud of the job we did of maintaining AfterEllen, but we believe that Gaye and Memoree will help take the site to new heights. I’m happy to know it will remain a unique and important home for many of the members who identify so strongly with its lesbian community. We wish them both the best of luck in this new endeavor.”
– Aaron Broder, CEO, Evolve Media
Memoree Joelle agreed that the sale will be a boon for the lesbian community it serves.
“We purchased AfterEllen because we wanted to ensure that the site is around for many years to come. There is nothing else like AfterEllen out there, as we see it as the only media site that caters content specifically for lesbian and bi women. To that end, we are proud to represent lesbians, being lesbians ourselves, who we feel are a very underrepresented minority today. I’m very grateful for Aaron Broder and Evolve Media for giving us this opportunity. They have supported me in so many ways throughout the years I worked for them, and they have done everything to make sure the sale to Gaye and I went smoothly. They continue to offer their business expertise and support, which is so rare in the business world today. Our relationship with them is invaluable.”
AfterEllen has been entertaining women since 2002 and is considered the leading digital publication for lesbian and bi women in the United States.
