Back in April, Lucky EIC Eva Chen fended off rumors that the magazine would fold — and she did it via a rap video, which is pretty baller. Today, there’s a big announcement about Lucky, but it’s not the feared going-out-of-business one. BeachMint, the Los Angeles–based e-commerce company — known for its collaborations with Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, Kate Bosworth, and Rachel Bilson — is entering into a joint venture with Condé Nast. According to a press release, the new entity will be called the Lucky Group, with Chen serving as chief creative officer and BeachMint’s Josh Bearman as the CEO. Condé Nast artistic director Anna Wintour will be an advisor.
A spokesperson for Condé Nast confirmed that Lucky will continue to put out its regular ten issues a year, though it notably will not be joining the rest of the Condé pack at 1 World Trade Center. While further details of the BeachMint linkup are still unclear, Chen told TechCrunch: “Lucky is a magazine you talk back to. There’s already that engagement and conversation. It’ll now feel more like a little bit both commerce and a little bit magazine.” E-commerce and editorial linkups are already a dime a dozen, but this is a new iteration; it should be interesting to see the results of this full-on approach.