Today we’d like to introduce you to Tim Chan.
Tim, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I’m originally from Toronto but went to journalism school at Columbia University in New York. I studied print journalism and specialized in arts and culture writing. Keep in mind, this was back in 2006 when everyone was interested in writing about politics, especially as the Obama wave was just coming in. But while I had a keen interest in current events, I realized my interests aligned more with arts and entertainment. So while all my classmates wrote their masters thesis on international relations and then-president George W. Bush, I wrote my thesis on “online cool hunters,” profiling a then-brand new site called Coolhunting.com and following two best friends who were about to launch a site called Thrillist. I still remember meeting up with the guys at a “hipster tea spot” in Manhattan to discuss all the cool parties and events they were listing in their weekly email newsletters; it’s been amazing to see how far they’ve come since then.
I did a ton of internships during my time in j-school, and after graduation, I landed my first job at NY1, a local television news station that was basically like a 24-hour CNN, but for the five boroughs. I started as a writer, then worked my way up to become the morning show producer. I woke up at 2am every day, was in the studio by 3 and we were live and on air by 4. My day ended at noon.
With that schedule, I usually went to bed at 8pm, so I had all my afternoons free. I met a fellow Canadian in New York who had studied photography at the School of Visual Arts and we bonded over our shared dream of starting a print magazine. Eventually, we saved up some money, took out a small loan and started Corduroy Magazine. I worked my morning show shift from 3am to noon and then used the afternoons to interview actors, musicians, designers, and artists for Corduroy. We put out 11 issues that I am still incredibly proud of, and we had the chance to meet everyone from Anjelica Huston to Marina Abramovic, who both appeared on our covers.
While I was still working on Corduroy, I had the chance to move back home to Toronto to work at MuchMusic (basically the Canadian MTV). I had grown up watching that station and it was a dream job to produce for them. So I left New York after four years to return home to work at MUCH. There, I produced a daily show for them similar to “TRL,” and I also produced all their fashion coverage. One of the shows I launched (and keep in mind, this was in 2010), was called “#trending” and we put YouTube makeup artists on TV. We had people like Kandee Johnson, Bethany Mota and Eman Makeup creating content for our show, long before they had agents and publicists who were getting them on red carpets and “Dancing With The Stars.” I loved doing that show, even if I didn’t quite understand that “influencer” phenomenon back then.
In 2013, I decided I wanted to see what else was “out there” and I made the move to LA. I once again worked in fashion, freelancing for magazines like i-D and Nylon, and also consulted for a bunch of LA fashion brands. After a few years of #freelancelife, I started applying for full-time gigs again, and, after a brief gig at Snapchat (I was there the day Instagram launched Insta-stories and that was enough to convince me I needed to move on), I landed at Penske Media Corp. They were looking for an editor for their new men’s lifestyle site, Spy.com, and I guess I fit the bill?
It’s now been almost three years at PMC, and in addition to running Spy.com, I also cover lifestyle for other PMC outlets like Rolling Stone, Variety and StyleCaster.com.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
Being a journalist in this day and age definitely has its challenges. For starters, I specialized in print journalism(!) back when people were already talking about the “death of print” and the rise of digital. I had to learn to adapt. I might be great at writing 2000-word profile pieces, but if people are reading content on their phones and tablets, I need to also be able to give them “short and sweet” content they can digest during a commute or break from work. Working at Snapchat, where each “snap” is just ten seconds, also taught me a lot about telling stories in small bites. My biggest lesson: don’t be in love with your own words; there’s always room for editing.
We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
I’m super proud of Spy.com, which is like a little brother to some of the other men’s lifestyle sites out there. There’s really a gap in the digital space for men’s sites that are approachable, relatable and easy to digest. I mean, I love scrolling through GQ and Esquire, but I can’t afford any of the stuff they write about and their “advice” columns are usually about problems I can’t relate to (i.e., “How to Plan Your Luxury Trip to Bali” or “How To Store Your Ferrari in the Winter”). SPY reads and feels like a friend who’s not trying to impress you, but is just trying to be there for you in case you have a question or need a suggestion on what to make for dinner (that’s #Whole30 approved) or what to wear to your interview.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
I’m lucky that SPY is part of Penske Media, which is a big media company. When I was doing my own magazine, Corduroy, and self-publishing, I ran it too much like a passion project instead of as a business. So while we had amazing content, we were always scrambling for money. Because it was just my friend and I, we had to assume the roles of not just Editor-in-Chief and Creative Director, but also as the ad sales manager and accountant and marketing team for the brand. We spent so much time on the creative part of it, but we didn’t think about how we would make money to sustain the magazine.
Have you ever been to fashion week? Every year there are new and emerging brands who spend a ton of money to create a collection and stage a big runway show. They get a ton of buzz, but then you never near about them again? Why? It’s because they spent all their money on the fashion show, and didn’t think about how to sustain the line long-term. They have no money left on actual production or sales or distribution.
If I had to start over, I would’ve definitely tightened up my business chops, or at least hired someone who could run the business side of things.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.spy.com
- Instagram: @mrtimchan
- Twitter: @mrtimchan
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