British blog publishing house Shiny Media is crossing the Atlantic, aiming to launch up to 10 US sites in the next few months. Jointly founded in 2004 by technology journalist Ashley Norris, the Shiny stable has grown to some 42 blogs and a claimed 3.5 million monthly visitors on such British topics as Coronation Street and Manchester United. But its expansion will involve launching a US fashion weblog, Shiny Style, and a style site, Shiny Gloss, “written by Americans for Americans”.
Norris: “Our existing London based blogs Catwalk Queen and Shoewawa are already in the top 10 fashion blogs read by Americans, so we do have a good track record across the pond” (based on April independent research in to fashion blogs not affiliated with magazines or major media owners). The operation will use Shoewawa’s Pensylvania-based US correspondent Andrea Thatcher as its US editorial director, will also have a New York presence and will recruit freelancer bloggers elsewhere. Shiny took $4.5 million funding from Bright Station Ventures in return for a 50 percent stake in January.