Gwyneth Paltrow Assumes CEO Position at Goop

By Melissa Campanelli

Actress-turned-entrepreneur Gwyneth Paltrow has been named the CEO of her growing lifestyle brand Goop. In a meeting with a small group of employees last Monday in the firm’s Santa Monica office, Paltrow reportedly discussed her new position when it was printed on a mockup of a Goop newsletter, according to an article in The New Yorker discussing the brand’s move into vitamins. Paltrow's apparent elevation to CEO had not yet been formally announced, but she said in the meeting that the board made the decision. Goop, which Paltrow founded as a newsletter nine years ago, raised $15 million in venture capital last year.

Total Retail’s Take: Naming Paltrow CEO of Goop is surprising, especially since in July she said she wanted to separate herself from the brand in order to grow it. At the time, then CEO Lisa Gersh also announced she would leave her role and instead become a strategic adviser and wouldn't be directly replaced. Goop hired Gersh, formerly CEO of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, in 2014 to help the brand marry content and commerce. Paltrow and Gersh told Fortune that they planned to bring advertisers to the site and launch the sale of Goop-branded goods. Goop currently sells clothes, fragrances, skincare and vitamins. We’ll be watching Goop and Paltrow closely this year, especially as the company expands more deeply into e-commerce and private label.

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Melissa Campanelli Author's page Melissa Campanelli is Editor-in-Chief of Total Retail. She is an industry veteran, having covered all aspects of retail, tech, digital, e-commerce, and marketing over the past 20 years. Melissa is also the co-founder of the Women in Retail Leadership Circle.