Essence Communications
Essence Communications is a privately-held, multi-platform media company founded in 1969 serving Black women through a print magazine, digital properties, flagship events, and the WeLoveUs.shop commerce platform, operating as a subsidiary of Sundial Media & Technology Group.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1970
- HeadquartersNew York, United States
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Essence Communications does
Essence Communications Inc. is a privately-held, multi-platform media company founded in 1969, headquartered at 34 35th Street in Brooklyn, NY under parent Sundial Media & Technology Group, with an editorial office at the Time & Life Building in Rockefeller Center, New York. The company serves Black women through a portfolio of owned media properties spanning print (ESSENCE Magazine, published six issues per year), digital (essence.com and mobile apps on iOS and Android), youth-focused vertical Girls United, and major live events including the ESSENCE Festival of Culture in New Orleans, Black Women in Hollywood, and the GU Summit.
The business operates four distinct revenue streams: magazine subscriptions priced at $12 per year or $18 for two years (auto-renewing print + digital bundles), advertising and sponsorships from major consumer brands (Coca-Cola, Louis Vuitton, H&M, Steve Madden, Pat McGrath), e-commerce transaction fees through the newly launched WeLoveUs.shop community commerce platform (December 2025) supporting Black women-led brands with bi-weekly payouts and real-time inventory synchronization, and event ticketing and experiential sponsorships. The company employs 51-100 people and maintains a portfolio of wholly-owned subsidiaries including Essence Studios, Soko Mrkt, Ese Funds, and acquired brands Refinery29, Afropunk, BeautyCon, and NaturallyCurly.
Essence's go-to-market is community-led and event-driven, leveraging deep cultural authority built over 55+ years to attract both Black women consumers and brand advertisers seeking authentic engagement. The company was founded by Penny Burke, Clarence O. Smith, Edward Lewis, Jonathan Blount, and Cecil Hollingsworth, with Avani Patel serving as Chief Operating Officer. Acquired by Time Inc. in 2015, the company was later sold to Sundial Media & Technology Group in 2018 following the Time-Meredith merger, and has since pursued a multi-brand portfolio strategy under the ESSENCE Ventures initiative.
Essence Communications firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Essence Communications
- Legal name
- ESSENCE Communications Inc.
- Website
- http://www.essence.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1970
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- Essence Communications is a privately-held, multi-platform media company founded in 1969 serving Black women through a print magazine, digital properties, flagship events, and the WeLoveUs.shop commerce platform, operating as a subsidiary of Sundial Media & Technology Group.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Essence Communications industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Women's Lifestyle Media
- NAICS
- Media Buying Agencies (541830), Convention and Trade Show Organizers (56192)
- SIC
- Services-Advertising Agencies (7311)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Multicultural & Diversity Marketing Creative Agencies (MPAAAAAK)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Merchandising & D2C Management (Artists) (MPAIAGAI)
Keywords
Where Essence Communications is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New York
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Essence Communications business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Others
Revenue model
- Magazine Subscriptions: Print and digital magazine subscriptions with automatic renewal. Subscribers receive print issues delivered monthly plus digital access across devices. Revenue from recurring subscription fees.
- Advertising & Sponsorships: Brand advertising across digital properties, print magazine, email newsletters, and video content. Sponsored content and branded partnerships with major consumer brands.
- E-commerce (WeLoveUs.shop): Community commerce platform supporting Black women-led brands. Takes transaction fees from sales through the platform while providing operational support to emerging brands.
- Events & Experiential: Revenue from ESSENCE Festival of Culture, Black Women in Hollywood, GU Summit, and other events including ticket sales, sponsorships, and experiential activations.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | 1 Year Print + Digital (Gift Subscription) |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | 2 Year Print + Digital Subscription |
| Subscription | Annual | 1 Year Print + Digital Subscription |
| Subscription | Annual | 1 Year Print + Digital (Non-Gift) |
| Subscription | Annual | 1 Year Print + Digital Gift (Alternative) |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels8 records
Marketing channels10 records
Essence Communications product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Essence Communications operates a multi-platform media business centered on the ESSENCE Magazine (print and digital subscription editions) and Essence.com editorial website, serving Black women with content on fashion, beauty, celebrity, lifestyle, entertainment, and culture. The company has expanded into a community commerce marketplace (WeLoveUs.shop) supporting Black women-led brands, signature live events (ESSENCE Festival of Culture, Black Women in Hollywood, GU Summit), and youth-focused editorial under the Girls United vertical. Revenue is generated through consumer subscriptions, advertising and sponsorships, e-commerce transaction fees, and event ticket and experiential sales.
Product overview
Essence Communications Inc. operates as a multi-platform media company primarily serving Black women through a portfolio of magazines, digital properties, events, and e-commerce initiatives. The core offering is ESSENCE Magazine (print and digital subscriptions), distributed via essence.com and mobile applications across Apple Newsstand, Amazon Appstore, Barnes & Noble, and Google Play. Supporting digital platforms include Essence Girls United (GU), a youth-focused vertical, and WeLoveUs.shop, a community commerce marketplace supporting Black women-led brands. The company has expanded through acquisitions including BeautyCon, NaturallyCurly, Afropunk, and Refinery29, and operates subsidiaries such as ESSENCE Studios, Soko Mrkt, and Ese Funds. Major events include the annual ESSENCE Festival of Culture.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Essence Girls United (GU): Digital destination for young, multicultural individuals focusing on community, mentors, perspectives, and opportunities
- WeLoveUs.shop
- ESSENCE Studios
- Soko Mrkt
- Ese Funds
Products and services
- ESSENCE Magazine Print and digital publication covering fashion, beauty, lifestyle, entertainment, and culture targeted at Black women. Distributed via monthly print subscription and digital edition across iOS, Android, and digital newsstands, with six issues per year and a $9.99 cover price.
- Essence Girls United (GU) Global digital destination for young, multicultural women and gender-expansive youth offering content on fashion, beauty, entertainment, wellness, business, and identity, paired with the annual GU Summit event.
- WeLoveUs.shop Community commerce marketplace supporting Black women-led brands, offering bi-weekly vendor payouts, real-time inventory synchronization, and operational support to emerging consumer brands.
- ESSENCE Festival of Culture Annual flagship cultural festival in New Orleans featuring concerts, panels, world premieres, and celebrity appearances that celebrates Black culture and serves as a major demand generation and brand activation event.
- Black Women in Hollywood Annual awards and networking event celebrating Black women in entertainment, featuring red carpet appearances, awards, and industry recognition panels.
- ESSENCE Studios Media production and content creation studio under ESSENCE Ventures producing original content including video, editorial, and branded content for the Essence Communications ecosystem.
Quantifiable outcome
- WeLoveUs.shop launched to support Black women-led brands amid economic challenges
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Essence Communications
Customer profileNamed customers9 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Essence Communications technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature2 records
Essence Communications partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Essence Communications competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Blavity: Digital-first media company focused on Black culture and audiences, directly competing with Essence for the same Black-women readership across fashion, beauty, and lifestyle. Operates Blavity News, Blavity Beauty, and other verticals with higher publishing velocity.
- MadameNoire: Digital lifestyle publication targeting Black women with content on beauty, fashion, career, and relationships. Closely comparable audience and content mix to Essence's digital properties, operating without the legacy print component.
- HelloBeautiful: Black-women-focused digital media brand covering entertainment, beauty, fashion, and lifestyle. Owned by iOne Digital (formerly Interactive One), directly competing with Essence.com for the same Black-women audience segment.
- The Root: Black-culture-focused news, opinion, and lifestyle publication. Comparable audience demographic with Essence and direct overlap in culture, celebrity, and lifestyle coverage, though tilted more toward news and opinion.
- Refinery29: Women-focused lifestyle media brand (fashion, beauty, entertainment) that is currently owned by Sundial Media & Technology Group alongside Essence. Functionally a peer within the same corporate family but with a broader (less culturally specific) audience and overlapping editorial coverage.
- Afropunk: Black culture and music festival/media brand currently owned by Sundial Media & Technology Group alongside Essence. Comparable in event-led GTM and Black-audience focus, though skewed toward music/festival rather than lifestyle publishing.
Broad incumbents
- BET (ViacomCBS): Larger incumbent media company targeting Black audiences through television, digital, and events. Comparable in audience targeting and cultural authority but operates across broader entertainment (TV/film) rather than as a publishing-led lifestyle brand.
- Allure: Mainstream beauty publication under Condé Nast, competing with Essence in beauty and lifestyle content. Comparable in beauty editorial coverage but addresses a broader (less multicultural-targeted) audience.
Emerging players
- Gal-dem: Independent magazine and platform centering women and non-binary people of color. Comparable in mission and underserved audience targeting, though smaller in scale and digital-only versus Essence's print + digital + events portfolio.
- Shadow & Act: Digital platform covering Black entertainment, culture, and lifestyle. Comparable in audience focus and content categories, though smaller in scale and lacking Essence's event IP and commerce platforms.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Essence Communications social profiles
Digital presenceEssence Communications financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Essence Communications leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles6 records
Essence Communications subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries9 records
Essence Communications funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Essence Communications M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Essence Communications
What does Essence Communications do?
Essence Communications operates a multi-platform media business centered on the ESSENCE Magazine (print and digital subscription editions) and Essence.com editorial website, serving Black women with content on fashion, beauty, celebrity, lifestyle, entertainment, and culture. The company has expanded into a community commerce marketplace (WeLoveUs.shop) supporting Black women-led brands, signature live events (ESSENCE Festival of Culture, Black Women in Hollywood, GU Summit), and youth-focused editorial under the Girls United vertical. Revenue is generated through consumer subscriptions, advertising and sponsorships, e-commerce transaction fees, and event ticket and experiential sales.
Is Essence Communications a public or private company?
Essence Communications is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Essence Communications founded?
Essence Communications was founded in 1970. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is Essence Communications based?
Essence Communications is headquartered in New York, United States, in the North America region.
How does Essence Communications make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Magazine Subscriptions are the primary driver. The others are advertising & Sponsorships, E-commerce (WeLoveUs.shop) and events & Experiential.
Who are Essence Communications's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Blavity, MadameNoire, HelloBeautiful, The Root, Refinery29 and Afropunk. Broad incumbents are BET (ViacomCBS) and Allure. Emerging players are Gal-dem and Shadow & Act.
Does Essence Communications have an API?
No public API is recorded for Essence Communications.
What industry is Essence Communications in?
Essence Communications's product category is Women's Lifestyle Media. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAAAAAK, Multicultural & Diversity Marketing Creative Agencies, with a secondary code of MPAIAGAI, Merchandising & D2C Management (Artists). Its NAICS code is 541830 and its SIC code is 7311.