Blurb Announces Two Company Hires -- CMO and General Manager

SAN FRANCISCO, March 08, 2016 -- Blurb, Inc., the leading creative book and magazine self-publishing platform, announced two key additions to its executive leadership team with the hiring of Elizabeth (Liz) Allen as Chief Marketing Officer and Kelly Leach as Senior Vice President/General Manager.

Kelly Leach, SVP, General Manager for Blurb Liz Allen, Chief Marketing Officer for Blurb

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“I’m delighted to have two such talented individuals join our team, as we’re building great momentum across the company,” said Todd Larsen, Blurb’s Chief Executive Officer. “Liz and Kelly bring extensive product, marketing and leadership experience to Blurb at a time when we’re focusing on its next phase of growth.  This is an exciting time for the company.”

Liz Allen will oversee all global marketing efforts for Blurb, focusing on branding, customer segmentation, pricing, and other initiatives.  She is former CMO of the At Home Group, a retail business that she rebranded and played a key role in driving major growth for the organization.  She has also served as GM of Bella Pictures and Bella Events, and held senior marketing positions for Cost Plus World, Gap, Inc., and LucasArts.

“I’m thrilled to join the Blurb team and lead the marketing efforts for this dynamic brand,” said Allen. “Blurb has had an incredible impact in the self-publishing world and I’m confident that we can extend our reach and expand how we help customers showcase their creativity.”

Kelly Leach joins Blurb from Piano Media, a technology platform company serving newspapers with a SaaS commerce solution for their digital subscriptions, where she was CEO.  She previously held a variety of strategic and operating positions with Dow Jones & Company and was Managing Director in EMEA and GM of The Wall Street Journal. At Blurb, Leach will oversee the product team, international strategy, and business development efforts.  

“I’m delighted to be joining Blurb and working with the talented team,” said Leach. “I look forward to further developing the product and services in ways that will continue to empower and delight both new and existing Blurb customers around the world."

With almost two million authors worldwide, producing nearly four million titles, Blurb is the largest privately held self-publishing platform globally.

ABOUT BLURB
Blurb® is a self-publishing platform and creative community that enables individuals to design, publish, share, sell, and distribute photo books, trade books, and magazines in both print and digital formats across the globe using its free, innovative book creation and layout tools. Founded in 2005 by Executive Chairman, Eileen Gittins, Blurb has nearly 2 million independent book authors worldwide, resulting in 3.9 million unique book titles, with more than 14 million units shipped to 80 countries around the world.  The company is headquartered in San Francisco and can be found online at www.blurb.com.

Media Contact:
Robin Carr
[email protected]