Email newsletter TheSkimm is following in the footsteps of its most famous reader, Oprah Winfrey.
Just as the media mogul releases her list of Favorite Things annually, TheSkimm's cofounders are recommending their must-haves to their 4 million-strong subscriber base.
And like the talk show queen, who signed a revenue share deal with Amazon.com, TheSkimm's Carly Zakin and Danielle Weisberg are hoping to make some cash from this latest endeavor.
Over the past two years, TheSkimm has been collecting affiliate revenues by suggesting books, wine, wearable tech, luggage and the like to their loyal "Skimm'rs" -- many of whom are in that ultimate demographic sweet-spot for marketers: millennial women with disposable income.
Now, the venture-backed content startup has added a curated holiday gift box to its product portfolio, which also includes their wildly popular daily news briefing and a chart-topping paid calendar app.
In a post on Medium, former Forbes Under 30 list members Zakin and Weisberg explained the move:
"Over the last 2 years and change, we have been testing what our audience wants from theSkimm Life," the two wrote. "Turns out they want books. Lots of them. We have since become one of the top drivers to Amazon, and according to publishers, rival the Today Show and New York Times in pushing sales. Turns out Skimm’rs also want wine. Lots of it. But they also have shown they trust our recommendations for gadgets and favorite products. So this year, we said 'F it, let’s see what happens.'"
This first holiday-themed gift box costs between $49 and $99, and includes "a top Skimm Read, a great bottle of vino, a product we can’t stop using, a Skimm cookie cutter, and a subscription to our app Skimm Ahead."
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The deal is an extension of an existing partnership with monthly wine delivery service Wine Awesomeness.
As Zakin and Weisburg noted in their Medium post, they've already proved "Skimm'rs" will pay for their products and services.
Weisberg, left, and Zakin of TheSkimm.
According to iTunes data, the paid SkimmAhead calendar app they launched this spring has regularly been in the top three on the 'Top Grossing' list within Apple's News category, ranked by in-app purchases.
"We’re proud of the fact that we’ve surpassed both The New York Times and Wall Street Journal, among other publications, at multiple points since launch," a spokesperson for TheSkimm said. "For instance, in the week leading up to the election, Skimm Ahead held the #1 spot on the list."
TheSkimm also showed itself to be a powerful registration platform in the run-up to the election. The newsletter service registered 111,000 voters through a simple site it co-created with Rock The Vote, making it one of the nonprofit's most successful partners.
