Kitchn is now one of the most well-known digital platforms focused on cooking, food, and home-related content. With engaging recipes, lifestyle advice, kitchen tips, and beautiful visuals, it has cemented its place in the world of online food media. But how did it all start? Who founded Kitchn, and what drove the creation of this beloved website? In this article, we’ll explore the origins of Kitchn, the people behind its founding, and how it evolved into the influential brand it is today.
The Birth of Kitchn: Origins in Food Blogging
To understand who founded Kitchn, we need to first understand its parent company and the food media landscape at the turn of the 21st century. Kitchn was born out of the vision and passion of several key individuals within The Well-Planned Network, which would later become Apartment Therapy Media. The website launched in 2005 as an offshoot of The Cookery, a food-focused community that never quite took off as expected.
Founding Vision and Goals
The founders of Kitchn were not just food lovers but also digital media strategists. They wanted to create a modern-day cooking resource that resonated with home cooks of all experience levels and integrated seamlessly with the online habits of the time. At its core, Kitchn was meant to be approachable, practical, and beautifully designed — a space where users didn’t need to be professional chefs to enjoy creating meals.
Initial Mission Statement
From the beginning, Kitchn’s mission was clear:
- Make everyday cooking joyful and accessible
- Offer real-world, applicable kitchen advice
- Focus on the home cook, not just fine dining
- Celebrate the beauty and community found in food
This mission has remained remarkably consistent throughout its growth and editorial changes over the years.
Meet the Founders: The Team Behind Kitchn
Kitchn was not founded by a single person, but rather by several key individuals who played vital roles in its formation and early success.
Sara Kate Gillingham: Founding Editor-in-Chief
Sara Kate Gillingham is often cited as the founder and foundational force behind Kitchn. A trained chef and former editor at Clarkson Potter and Fine Cooking magazines, Gillingham was one of the first hires at The Well-Planned Network. When the idea for Kitchn came to life, she was tapped to become its first Editor-in-Chief. Gillingham helped define the editorial tone and voice of the website — approachable, educational, and filled with real home cooking experiences.
She was instrumental in developing what would become known as the “Kitchn style” — a mix of relatable food advice, visual inspiration, and practical tips for everyday living.
Fait Catlin: Early Co-Founder and Developer
Fait Catlin, a developer with a background in media and design, was part of the startup team that built out the website. Alongside founder Maxwell Ryan, Gillingham, and other early contributors, Catlin played a key role in translating food content into an engaging website experience. In many ways, the initial technical foundation of Kitchn was laid by this early production team working under the umbrella of The Well-Planned Network.
Maxwell Ryan: Founder of Apartment Therapy and Kitchn’s Parent Company
The Architect of a Lifestyle Media Empire
Maxwell Ryan is the founder of Apartment Therapy, which started in 2003 as a blog focused on affordable home decorating and DIY projects. Recognizing the potential for expanding into lifestyle content, he created The Well-Planned Network as a media umbrella, and Kitchn was the next venture to be launched under it.
Ryan’s vision of creating accessible, user-friendly websites where real people could learn to create beautiful lives in average spaces and budgets was the driving force behind Kitchn’s creation. He hired Gillingham and her team to build the platform from the ground up, offering them creative freedom with the goal of bringing Kitchn to life as a new kind of kitchen and food blog.
The Evolution of Kitchn: From Blog to Brand
Kitchn’s path to becoming a major food media brand was driven not only by its editorial team but also by the shifting dynamics of digital publishing in the early-to-mid 2000s. It was a time when food blogs were becoming more mainstream, user-generated content was on the rise, and platforms like WordPress and Google AdSense were empowering creators to publish content directly online.
Early Growth and User Engagement
Kitchn began building its audience almost immediately post-launch thanks to its clean design, consistent publishing schedule, and real-world, home-friendly recipes that resonated with readers. Unlike many other websites at the time, Kitchn emphasized photographs of actual meals cooked in home kitchens, often contributed by its own readers. This approach fostered a sense of community and made the site particularly appealing to a wide audience.
Monetization and Business Expansion
From the beginning, Kitchn was thought of not just as a content platform but as a business model. The founders and leadership within The Well-Planned Network had a clear idea of how to monetize the platform through advertising deals, affiliate links, and sponsored content. This forward-thinking business acumen allowed Kitchn to grow without becoming overloaded with intrusive ads — a key differentiator in its early years.
Partnerships and Publishing Deals
By the late 2000s, Kitchn had already expanded into print. Several books were published based on the website’s most popular content, including My Kitchen Year and The Kitchn Cookbook. Gillingham was often a contributor, and her culinary expertise helped bring credibility to the brand beyond the digital space.
Changes in Ownership and Leadership
In 2013, The Well-Planned Network was acquired by Syndicate Analytics, a digital publishing company. While this initially had little effect on the day-to-day operations of Kitchn, ownership changes often have implications in the media industry.
Later, in 2020, Kitchn, along with several other brands, was acquired by Ree Drummond’s company, Big Chef Little Chef, via a partnership with The Pioneer Woman brand. This acquisition was significant as it marked the transfer of Kitchn into new ownership under a strong media personality. Despite this, Kitchn has maintained its editorial independence and original philosophy.
Editorial Voices that Shaped Kitchn
While Gillingham was the first editor, several other key editorial figures have risen through the ranks and helped shape Kitchn over the years.
Emma Christiansen
Gillingham was later joined by Emma Christiansen, who worked as a Deputy Editor and helped build out Kitchn’s more visual and lifestyle-centric content. Christiansen’s expertise in design helped Kitchn maintain a consistent aesthetic that blended seamlessly between kitchen and home content.
Summer Miller and Dan Pelosi
In the mid-2010s, Summer Miller and Dan Pelosi were key contributors to Kitchn’s editorial team. Miller expanded coverage on family and budget-friendly meals, while Pelosi, a former bar manager turned content creator, brought a personal storytelling element into the recipes and daily cooking features.
Latest Leadership: Faith Durand and Kelli Foster
In more recent years, Faith Durand and Kelli Foster have served as editors. Each brought experience in food writing and photography, helping build the visual and recipe-driven content strategy that continues to define Kitchn today.
Kitchn’s Editorial Focus Today
Even after its sale in 2020, Kitchn has remained focused on its original mission — real food, for real people, in real kitchens.
Cooking and Baking
Kitchn is packed with well-tested recipes that run the gamut from casual weeknight dinners to hearty breads and indulgent desserts. The site includes detailed cooking tips, ingredient guides, and how-tos for anyone looking to improve their cooking skills.
Dietary Lifestyles and Inclusion
The site is also known for embracing a wide variety of dietary preferences and needs, including vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free, and plant-based content. Kitchn prides itself on publishing inclusive content that respects different cultural cuisines and food practices.
Kitchen Organization, Tools, and Cleaning Tips
Beyond food-specific content, Kitchn dives into the entire kitchen experience. From organizing pantry items to recommending essential cookware, the editors aim to provide a comprehensive guide to everyday cooking efficiency.
Home and Life Content
Given its history through Apartment Therapy Media, Kitchn has always maintained a connection to broader home life topics. This includes meal planning, food storage tips, kitchen cleaning routines, and even mental health in relation to cooking.
Breaking Down Kitchn’s Influence on Modern Cooking
Kitchn was not just another food website. It helped redefine how Americans approached cooking at home during the early blog era.
Daily Inspiration Without Intimidation
Unlike more magazine-style platforms that focused on restaurant-quality fare, Kitchn grounded itself in the idea that cooking didn’t have to be intimidating. The site thrived on the concept of everyday meals — making readers feel like they could cook anything with the ingredients they had at home.
Photography and Visual Learning
Kitchn’s clean, white-background photography style became a hallmark of its brand. This method of visual content delivery made learning how to cook easier and more intuitive, especially for beginners.
User Engagement and Community
By encouraging recipe reviews, posting cooking calendars, and showcasing reader photos, Kitchn fostered a unique sense of community that turned readers into active participants. This approach set it apart from other blogs and professional publications.
Interesting Facts About Kitchn
Even if you’ve cooked from Kitchn before or followed their newsletter, you might not know some of the quirks and unique moments in their history.
1. Kitchn Was Named After A Typo
The founders made a typo when registering the domain — they meant to use “kitchen” but accidentally typed “kitchn.” Rather than start over, they embraced the mistake and made it the brand name. It’s a fun, unintentional origin that speaks to the informal and human nature of the media startup world.
2. The Kitchn 201 Challenge Was Highly Successful
In the 2010s, Kitchn launched a 201-day challenge that encouraged readers to cook at home more frequently. The campaign was designed as a way for users to reset their cooking habits and develop better routines. It was immensely popular and is still talked about in food media circles.
3. Kitchn Has Been Called the “Home Ec for the Digital Age”
Many critics and analysts have described Kitchn as modern home economics — a source of essential knowledge for anyone learning how to cook, clean, or run a household in an efficient way.
Looking Forward: The Future of Kitchn
The acquisition by Pioneer Woman has prompted some changes in operations and branding, but the editorial content and focus remain strong. As Kitchn continues to adapt to the evolving culinary media landscape, there are a number of ways the brand may grow in the future.
Expansion into Video Content
Like many food websites in the 2020s, Kitchn is exploring more video-based platforms and recipe tutorials. While photography and step-by-step guides have always worked well, short-form and long-form video offers new ways to engage home cooks.
Personalization and Smart Meal Planning
Emerging tech trends and recipe personalization are likely to influence future developments. Kitchn may begin to incorporate AI tools, grocery shopping lists, or mobile apps that integrate with meal planning and daily cooking.
Growing International Influence
Although Kitchn started in the U.S. with a distinctly American bent, it could see growth in global readership. As cultural cuisines continue to become more widely appreciated and shared, Kitchn may offer more international recipes and food guides, catering to a broader global audience.
Final Thoughts
Kitchn’s story is more than a tale of successful entrepreneurship. It’s the chronicle of a group of passionate individuals who saw a space in home cooking culture and built a website that became a staple in countless American kitchens. Founded by Sara Kate Gillingham under the leadership of Maxwell Ryan and a small, creative team within The Well-Planned Network, Kitchn today stands as a testament to the power of accessible, practical, and beautifully presented knowledge.
No matter how far Kitchn may evolve, its roots remain in everyday cooking comfort, community, and inspiration — qualities that have defined the site from its founding in 2005 to the present day.
References and Additional Reading
For those interested in diving deeper into the history of Kitchn and its founders, here are some reputable sources and online archives:
- Official Kitchn Website Archive
- Media Industry Reports on Digital Food Publications
- Eater Profile on Sara Kate Gillingham
- Forbes Coverage of the Sale to The Pioneer Woman
Whether you’re drawn in by their recipes, their clean aesthetic, or their history, Kitchn remains a unique chapter in America’s digital media revolution. And for that, we can thank the visionaries who brought the site from a typo to a global name in home kitchens.
Who founded Kitchn and what inspired them?
Kitchn was founded by Faith Durand and Sara Kate Gillingham in 2005. At the time, both women were working in the publishing industry and developed a shared passion for home cooking and making it accessible to everyone. They envisioned a platform that would bridge the gap between professional culinary knowledge and the everyday home cook, offering practical tips, recipes, and inspiration that aligned with real-life cooking challenges.
Their motivation stemmed from the growing food movement and the desire to simplify cooking for people who might feel intimidated by complex recipes or restaurant-level techniques. Inspired by trends in food blogging and the rise of digital media, they created Kitchn as a go-to resource that would evolve with the changing culinary landscape. This included covering everything from kitchen organization to seasonal cooking, all while keeping a warm, approachable tone that made readers feel at home.
What was the original mission of Kitchn when it launched?
When Kitchn first launched, its core mission was to make cooking more approachable and enjoyable for a wide audience. Faith and Sara Kate wanted to shift the narrative away from elite culinary standards and instead focus on real-world kitchens and home cooking. They emphasized the idea that anyone could cook delicious meals using simple ingredients and practical techniques, no matter their skill level or schedule.
To support this mission, Kitchn provided tutorials, equipment guides, and budget-friendly recipes. The site also encouraged community interaction, allowing readers to share their own cooking experiences and ask questions. This helped foster a sense of inclusivity, ensuring that the site felt more like a conversation than a lecture. Over time, this mission remained central, even as the site expanded and evolved with changing trends in food media.
How did Kitchn become a standalone website?
Kitchn was originally launched as a part of the Apartment Therapy network, which focuses on home lifestyle topics. Faith and Sara Kate created the blog within this broader home-focused platform to tap into an already engaged audience interested in personal spaces, including kitchens and cooking. Their unique vision and growing readership allowed Kitchn to develop a distinct identity that resonated beyond the Apartment Therapy brand.
As the popularity of Kitchn grew, so did the potential for independence. In 2014, it was restructured to operate as a standalone brand, allowing more flexibility in content expansion and business development. This shift enabled the team to create more original content, experiment with new formats, and launch a robust editorial calendar that positioned Kitchn for continued growth as a leading voice in the home cooking space.
What sets Kitchn apart from other cooking websites?
What sets Kitchn apart is its strong emphasis on accessibility, education, and simplicity in the kitchen. Unlike some culinary websites that target seasoned home cooks or professional chefs, Kitchn focuses on empowering beginners and everyday cooks with the tools and knowledge they need to feel confident in their cooking. Its recipes are often stripped down to the essentials, and technique-driven posts break complex ideas into easy-to-follow steps.
In addition, Kitchn embraces both modern culinary trends and time-tested methods, ensuring that the content remains relevant and grounded. The site also covers the broader kitchen space, offering advice on organizing pantries, choosing cookware, and understanding essential kitchen tools. With its warm, inclusive voice and practical focus, Kitchn has carved out a unique niche in the world of digital food media.
What are some major milestones in Kitchn’s history?
One of Kitchn’s earliest milestones was launching as part of Apartment Therapy in 2005. This provided a ready audience and a built-in home lifestyle community, helping Kitchn grow rapidly in its initial years. Faith Durand served as the site’s Editor-in-Chief and played a key role in shaping its editorial direction, expanding the team, and developing high-quality, approachable content.
Another significant milestone came in 2014 when Kitchn transitioned into an independent brand. This allowed for greater creative freedom and opened the door for more ambitious projects, including video series, weekly meal plans, and in-depth guides. Over the years, Kitchn has also cultivated a loyal community of readers and contributors, while continuing to stay relevant in the ever-evolving landscape of online food content.
How has Kitchn’s audience changed since its founding?
Since its founding, Kitchn’s audience has evolved from a younger, urban demographic drawn to Apartment Therapy’s style into a broader, more diverse group of home cooks. Initially, the site attracted apartment dwellers looking to improve their small kitchen setups, but its appeal has since expanded to include people of all ages and living situations who are interested in mastering the art of home cooking.
While the early audience was more interested in aesthetics and organization, today’s readers come to Kitchn for practical advice, easy recipes, and comprehensive kitchen education. With increased digital access and shifts in social media habits, the site has also embraced readers who seek bite-sized, shareable content alongside long-form features. These changes have required Kitchn to adapt its tone and format while keeping its core values intact.
What is Faith Durand’s background and how has it influenced Kitchn?
Faith Durand is a writer and editor with a degree from Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration, which gave her a strong foundation in culinary arts and food systems. Before founding Kitchn, she worked in publishing and editorial, honing her ability to communicate complex ideas clearly and approachably. Her diverse experience in food writing, recipe development, and digital media has played a central role in shaping Kitchn’s voice and direction.
Durand’s passion for demystifying food and cooking for everyday life has been a guiding force for the website. She believes food should be a source of joy, not intimidation, and this philosophy has heavily influenced how Kitchn structures its content. By emphasizing practicality, she’s helped the site remain accessible to a wide audience, while still incorporating innovation in home cooking trends and techniques.