GOOD Worldwide
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Founder |
|
| Headquarters | Los Angeles |
Key people | Max Schorr(CEO) |
| Subsidiaries |
|
| Website | https://goodinc.com/ |
GOOD Worldwide Inc. is a United States–based media company that reports on businesses and non-profits.[1][2] The company was founded in 2006 and has offices in Los Angeles, New York, and Seattle. The company is made up of three organizations: media brands, Upworthy and GOOD, and consumer goods brand, All In.[3]
Brands
[edit]GOOD Worldwide consists of three organizations.
All In
[edit]All In is a consumer snack brand that rebranded in June 2025 from its previous name, This Saves Lives, following its acquisition by GOOD Worldwide in 2022. Initially co-founded by Kristen Bell, the brand has changed its formula and is now certified USDA organic and allergen-free. The brand has partnered with Starbucks.[4] The launch received $4M in funding led by Obvious Ventures.[5]
GOOD
[edit]GOOD is a media outlet and produces the online news site www.good.is.[6]
Upworthy
[edit]Upworthy is a media brand that focuses on publishing positive stories. It was started in March 2012 by Eli Pariser and Peter Koechley, and was acquired by GOOD Worldwide in 2017.[7][8] Originally, Upworthy focused on featuring existing content found elsewhere on the internet, but it later shifted to sharing more original content.[9] In 2021 it was ranked as one of the Top 100 Social Brands,[10] and in 2024 it reached over 100 million people per month.[11]
History
[edit]GOOD was co-founded in 2006 by Ben Goldhirsh (son of Inc. magazine founder Bernie Goldhirsh), Max Schorr, and Casey Caplowe.[12][13] Eschewing experienced editors, he hired friends from college and high school, including Al Gore's son, Al Gore III.[12]
Business strategy and launch
[edit]GOOD was launched in fall of 2006.[14][15][16][17] Instead of traditional marketing strategies, GOOD used their marketing budget to throw launch parties.[12][18]
GOOD's business strategy included donating its magazine subscription fees entirely to charities, offering subscribers multiple options for which organization their fee supported.[12][19][20] In 2009 Goldhirsh said that advertising revenue had allowed the magazine to nearly break-even.[21]
In 2008, GOOD experimented with a three-month long name-your-own-pricing campaign. The campaign was kicked off in conjunction with a concept called the GOOD Sheet, a limited-time weekly newsprint distributed exclusively at Starbucks.[22][23] Each edition focused on a current affair, such as healthcare or education.[23]
In 2009, GOOD consolidated its brands Reason Pictures, GOOD Magazine, and GOOD Digital, into a single organization - GOOD Worldwide.[6] Around the same time, the company closed a Series A funding round and announced several partnership and investment agreements. These included agreements with Causes, Goodrec, and Govit. GOOD had grown to receiving over 2 million unique website visits a month, while its print magazine was read by around two hundred thousand people.[6]
On August 17, 2011, a joint announcement was made that social network service Jumo would be acquired by GOOD.[24]
In June 2012, most of the magazine's editors were fired.[25] According to Goldhirsh, the decision was made in order to refocus the company on its new website, GOOD.is.[26] Eight former GOOD magazine editors and writers raised funds on Kickstarter to create the one-shot magazine Tomorrow before going their separate ways.[27]
2015-Present
[edit]In March 2015, GOOD resumed publication of the magazine with a new design and format.[28] In 2017, the magazine received a National Magazine Award.[29]
In February 2016, Good Worldwide hired Nancy Miller, formerly of Wired, Fast Company, and Los Angeles magazine, as editor-in-chief of the digital and print magazine.[30]
In August 2018, Good Media Group laid off 31 employees from its Upworthy site. Upworthy CEO Charlie Wilkie resigned, and Eli Pariser resigned from the board.[31]
In 2024, GOOD Worldwide subsidiary Upworthy, released the nonfiction book “Good People: Stories from the Best of Humanity”, published by National Geographic.[32]
References
[edit]- ^ "About Us". GOOD. Archived from the original on September 14, 2012. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
- ^ "GOOD Adds YouTube CEO Chad Hurley And Pepsi CMO Jill Beraud To Advisory Board". TechCrunch. March 30, 2010. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
- ^ USPTO. "ALL IN - GOOD Worldwide Inc Trademark Registration". USPTO.report. Retrieved June 25, 2025.
- ^ Losciale, Marisa (June 16, 2025). "Starbucks Adds 'Amazing' New Item Backed by Kristen Bell to Stores". Parade. Retrieved July 11, 2025.
- ^ Chowdhry, Amit (June 20, 2025). "All In Food: $4 Million Raised For Snack Bar Products". Pulse 2.0. Retrieved July 18, 2025.
- ^ a b c Sutton, Kelsey (January 27, 2017). "Upworthy to merge with Good Worldwide, newsrooms to consolidate". POLITICO Media. Retrieved February 12, 2025.
- ^ Sutton, Kelsey (January 27, 2017). "Upworthy to merge with Good Worldwide, newsrooms to consolidate. About 20 staffers were laid off as part of the merger". Politico. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
- ^ "Kristen Bell's humanitarian snack company joins Good Worldwide | Food Business News". www.foodbusinessnews.net. Retrieved February 19, 2025.
- ^ "Upworthy Was One Of The Hottest Sites Ever. You Won't Believe What Happened Next". NPR. Retrieved February 19, 2025.
- ^ "The State of Social Media" (PDF). February 2022. Retrieved February 19, 2025.
- ^ Norton, Daniel (June 17, 2024). "How to Find and Share Positive Stories". Adorama. Retrieved February 19, 2025.
- ^ a b c d "A Magazine for Earnest Young Things". The New York Times. September 17, 2006. Retrieved May 29, 2016.
- ^ Sutton, Kelsey (January 27, 2017). "Upworthy to merge with Good Worldwide, newsrooms to consolidate". POLITICO Media. Retrieved December 5, 2024.
- ^ Marketplace: Smart (socially-conscious) business Archived 2011-09-27 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Magazine Aims to Be 'GOOD' for You NPR. October 10, 2007.
- ^ Magazine Makes 'GOOD'. NPR. November 22, 2007.
- ^ A Vision of 'GOOD' Works in Magazines, Web. NPR. December 8, 2007
- ^ Choose GOOD Anniversary Party, The Washington Post. Julia Beizer. Sept. 5, 2007.
- ^ Steel, Emily (July 20, 2006). "Wealthy Son Aims to Build His Legacy". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
- ^ "Inheriting the 'Entrepreneurial Spirit' - Ben Goldhirsh - GOOD magazine". Inc. June 19, 2007. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
- ^ O'Hara, Caroline (October 12, 2009). "Doing Well By Doing Good". Foreignpolicy.com. Archived from the original on March 2, 2015. Retrieved March 12, 2025.
- ^ Fell, Jason. "GOOD to Let Subscribers Name Their Own Price - Audience Development @ FolioMag.com". Test.foliomag.com. Archived from the original on December 15, 2013. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
- ^ a b "Ice-Breaker at Starbucks: The GOOD Sheet". The New York Times. September 8, 2008. Retrieved May 29, 2016.
- ^ Two Groups That Help Nonprofits in a Merger, Stephanie Strom, The New York Times, August 17, 2011
- ^ Beaujon, Andrew. "GOOD magazine lays off most of its editorial staffers". Poynter. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
- ^ Alexander, Annelise (June 19, 2013). "L.A. Trading Card: Ben Goldhirsh". LAmag - Culture, Food, Fashion, News & Los Angeles. Retrieved April 16, 2025.
- ^ Coscarelli, Joe. "Fired GOOD Staff Raises $20,000 for Tomorrow - Daily Intelligencer". NY Mag. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
- ^ "GOOD Magazine and the Print Pub Renaissance". Contently.com. April 23, 2015. Retrieved May 29, 2016.
- ^ "Ellie Awards | ASME". Archived from the original on February 13, 2017. Retrieved February 12, 2017.
- ^ Richard Horgan (March 18, 2016). "GOOD Magazine Has a New Editor in Chief". Adweek.com. Retrieved May 29, 2016.
- ^ Baldridge, Marlee (August 3, 2018). "Upworthy just laid off 31 people. The question remains why". NeimanLab. Harvard College. Retrieved December 9, 2019.
- ^ Schlichenmeyer, Terri. "Bookworm: 'Good People' might just make you feel better about life". Marco Island Florida. Retrieved June 18, 2025.