Kerry Mitchell, Ken Whyte's right-hand woman, let go from Rogers Consumer Publishing

It was announced today that two of the most senior publishing executives of Rogers Consumer Publishing have been let go. The most senior is Kerry Mitchell, the vice-president who had been a right hand and operative for president and publisher Ken Whyte. She had been with the company 9 years and had been involved in various firings and restructurings at magazines such as Chatelaine and Today's Parent; now, she has been restructured out of a job herself. Also gone is Kathryn Brownlie, senior vice-president of sales, consumer publishing, who had progressed through the company from working with the news and business group starting 9 years ago.

"For the time being, Lorraine Hoefler will assume leadership on the sales side of our business," said the memorandum, signed by Whyte. "Rosemary Munroe will assist in leading the teams at Today's Parent Group, FLARE, GLOW and Pure. Jim Hicks will continue to lead his brands."

Whyte's memo also said that at "town hall" sessions scheduled for this Wednesday and Thursday in Toronto and Montreal "I'll be sharing information about our publishing company, the larger Rogers organization within which we operate, our challenges and opportunities, and the structural changes behind the aforementioned departures."
It was back in 2009 that Whyte and Mitchell were put in charge of the consolidation of consumer magazines at Rogers. Whyte, who had been editor and publisher of Maclean's magazine, became vice-president, responsible as publisher for Maclean's, Canadian Business, Profit and MoneySense magazines.

Mitchell, the publisher of Chatelaine, became vice-president and assumed the publisher's job at Flare as well as becoming executive publisher of trade and custom titles Cosmetics, Cosmétiques, Glow and Pure magazines in the role of executive publisher. Recently, Whyte was named to succeed Brian Segal as president of Rogers Publishing, responsible for all consumer and trade publications.