Nearly seven months after finding success on crowdfunding platform Kickstarter, RRKIDZ, home of Reading Rainbow, has landed a new executive. Linda Benjamin has joined leading children’s media company as President of Global Strategy and Business Affairs.
The news was announced by company co-founders Mark Wolfe and LeVar Burton. Benjamin, most recently Executive Vice President, Business & Legal Affairs for Relativity Media, LLC, will spearhead business development for the company, with a focus on strategic brand extensions, growth of new children’s media consistent with the company’s mission-driven objectives and development of international programming across all media.
In a statement welcoming Benjamin, Wolfe stated, “Linda and I worked together 14 years ago and I have been impatiently waiting ever since to partner with her exceptional vision, uniquely diverse experience, brilliant deal-making skills and fiery passion to do good in the world. She is already helping drive RRKIDZ to become the dominant force in enriching the lives of children around the world, which has always been our core mission.”
In her first weeks at the company, Benjamin already has struck key strategic partnerships in consumer products, publishing and technology, and has begun planning the company’s expansion into Latin America.
Benjamin shared, “I’m thrilled and honored to join LeVar and Mark at this pivotal time for RRKIDZ. I look forward to building innovative programs and partnerships that expand our product line and our media footprint in the U.S. and internationally, while always staying true to our mission of delivering the quality and value that Reading Rainbow families have trusted for over 30 years.”
Prior to Relativity, where she focused on finance, international ventures and distribution, Benjamin was Executive Vice President and COO of Intermedia Films. She joins RRKIDZ during a period of unprecedented growth as the leading children’s educational media company. In order to bring Reading Rainbow to the web with separate versions designed for consumers and educators, the company mounted a record-shattering Kickstarter campaign in 2014, attracting more than 105,000 backers and $6.4 million to bring the beloved brand to Every Child, Everywhere. The Reading Rainbow subscription service, launched in 2012, is now in its third year as the #1 app in the educational space.
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