March Member of the Month: Stephanie Cohen, Director of Brand Partnerships, Apartment Therapy Media

Hometown & Current City: I grew up in the Suburbs of Cleveland, OH and currently live in the West Loop in Chicago, IL

Current job title and company? Director of Brand Partnerships at Apartment Therapy Media

Describe your career journey. I started my advertising career in 2010 working on the agency side of the business at Spark when the agency was only 80 employees and only Chicago based (well before it was established as Spark Foundry and turned into a massive global company). I spent almost 7 amazing years learning and growing at Spark working across Buying and Planning for Financial and CPG clients before heading to Mindshare Chicago to work on the General Mills account. After almost 9 years on the agency side, a good friend and previous colleague of mine recommended I come over to the sales side at Conde Nast. I was at Conde for 2 years mainly selling digital advertising for Bon Appetit and Epicurious, covering Midwest CPG accounts. Mid way through our first year of the pandemic in 2020, I decided to make the move over to Apartment Therapy Media to be their dedicated CPG seller (while also taking on some new categories such as Pharma and Auto) which is where I currently am today. The journey has been wonderful and I am thrilled to still be connected to so many of my former colleagues and other sales people I’ve met along the way.

Which three words would you use to describe your personality? Energetic, Thoughtful, Optimistic

Name a woman who inspires you and why. Impossible to pick one so here are a few:

My twin sister, Liz Cohen – She works as a product manager at a fitness tech company and is incredibly strategic and constantly learning. She challenges her team and herself and is always looking for ways to work smarter. She is also an incredibly talented athlete having mastered mountain biking in just a few short years living in Colorado.

My aunt, Saj-Nicole Joni – From a very young age my aunt challenged the gender roles of men and women and became the first female faculty member in the math department at MIT. She is now a business consultant, confidential CEO advisor, speaker, and author (having written/published 3 books). She is a big thinker and helps the world’s top executives solve big problems. She has always pushed me to ask the right questions, stand up for myself, want more and think big as well.

The SRI Mentoring Program – The women in this organization inspire me every time we connect. When we pair mentors and mentees, I love seeing all of the applications and learning more about the impressive women we have in this organization – not only are many of them successful, hardworking and driven but many also have exciting side hustles or hobbies that continue impress and inspire me.

What committees/programs are you involved in with She Runs It? I have been on the mentoring committee for about 6 years now and actively participate in pairing mentors and mentees within She Runs It in addition to being a mentor myself.  

What advice would you give to fellow new members in making the most of their membership? The classic “you get out of it what you put into it” really applies here. We are all very busy, but I recommend picking a few opportunities within SRI that speak to you. For me, that has been the mentoring program and the C-Suite series as I love learning from and hearing the stories of successful females at the top (almost like our very own “How I Built This”).

What do the words “She Runs It” mean to you? Female empowerment and support.

Your social handles: @cohensteph on IG or find me on LinkedIn