Mandi Norwood

Mandi Norwood is a respected writer and an award-winning editor in chief of women's magazines.

Originally from Manchester, England, Norwood began her journalistic career on local newspapers before attending the London College of Fashion and graduating in Fashion Journalism. After working on numerous British young women's magazines (Look Now, More!, and The Clothes Show magazine) and writing for newspapers (The Daily Mirror, the Daily Mail, and the Daily Star), at age 25 Norwood became the editor in chief of the British monthly teen style bible, Looks magazine.

Just one year later, she graduated to her first big, mainstream title: Company magazine, a publication aimed at 18-to-30-year-old, single women "in their freedom years." Her ability to identify what young women thought and felt propelled Company magazine into its position as the third-bestselling young women's magazine in Great Britain within two years and made Norwood a household name. It came as no surprise then that she won British Society of Magazine Editors industry awards, celebrating her circulation accomplishments and brilliantly conceived editorial content. From creating racy sealed sections on intimate sexual behavior among young women to heartbreaking, in-depth stories on domestic violence within cohabiting relationships, Norwood became the spokesperson on national radio and TV for the generation of women which invented Girl Power.

Her next stop was the U.K. edition of Cosmopolitan, which she took over when she was just 30 years old and which she enjoyed for five years. Within this well-known brand, Norwood injected her own style of humor and wit, and targeted young women with the precision of a heat-seeking missile, producing a monthly cocktail of news, sex and relationships, self-help, advice, and controversy. Not only did her editing success translate into numerous industry awards from the British Society of Magazine Editors and The Periodical Publications Association, but Norwood was also included amongst royalty, the aristocracy, and world leaders in Who's Who in Media and Who's Who in the World from 1999 onwards. Her enormous magazine success and numerous TV appearances on a wide range of programs—from daytime and morning light entertainment shows to nighttime news broadcasts—reinforced her position as the voice of young women. No wonder Britain's Prime Minister, Tony Blair, included her in his policy-making circles in the early years of his leadership, during which time Norwood advised him on a range of subjects from teenage pregnancy prevention to advertising to young women on the dangers of smoking.

While at Cosmopolitan, she wrote and published her first book, How to Be Number One in Your Own World (Thorsons, 2000). A self-help book that revealed her own secrets of success and provided advice on getting to the top of the ladder in work, love, and life, it has since been reproduced in Australia and South Africa, as well as in Spanish, German, and Thai.

In March 2000, Norwood was appointed as editor in chief of Condé Nast's young women's magazine, Mademoiselle. This 65-year-old brand was in need of a makeover, and following her outstanding U.K. magazine success, Norwood moved to the United States in a flurry of public relations noise. In her two years at the helm, not only did she re-brand Mademoiselle to speak loudly and brightly to young women who had left college but had not yet started a family, but she also captivated a new audience who had become tired of the same old formulaic magazines. Her work on Mademoiselle did not stop at executing vibrant, exciting pages on all aspects of young women's life. She was invited to the White House with a select group of influential magazine editors to discuss women's issues and emerging attitudes to all aspects of politics and government with then first lady Laura Bush. And she made numerous TV appearances on CBS, The View, Good Day LA, The Queen Latifa Show, and the Style Channel as an authority on relationships, social trends, and style.

Norwood's second book, Sex & The Married Girl, published in Summer 2003 (first in the United States and the U.K., then across Europe, Australia, and South Africa), took a gloves-off look at modern marriage. Its razor-sharp commentary, brutally honest interviews with 100 married women, and controversial subject matter (ranging from favorite sex positions to the secret stash of money many wives keep from their spouses) ensured it garnered global TV and newspaper coverage.

Harnessing her journalistic smarts, extensive women’s magazine experience, and and style and shopping passion, Norwood founded Shop Etc. magazine (and website), which she launched with the Hearst Corporation in 2004. With its unique, department-store-inspired architecture and content, combined with bold, beautiful layout and design, Shop Etc. achieved a circulation of almost 700,000 within two years. A regular contributor to CBS, CNN, Full Frontal Fashion, and local channels, Norwood has established herself as the fashion, home, and beauty shopping expert for thirtysomethings.

Norwood is married with two young daughters and currently lives in New York City.

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