Dara PKapoor

Dara P. Kapoor

About Me

I’m an executive content and media leader who builds, leads, and scales creative organizations where storytelling sits at the center of the business.

With deep roots in media and senior leadership experience across brand, marketing, and commerce, I bring a rare combination of creative authority and commercial fluency. I set enterprise content vision, unify brand voice and visual identity, and empower talented teams to produce work that drives audience growth, brand equity, and revenue.

Currently, as Vice President of Content at Wine Enthusiast Companies, I oversee all creative functions across media and commerce, serving as final creative authority while launching new digital experiences, content-led revenue streams, and award-winning editorial products—including the chart-topping Vinfamous podcast.

Throughout my career, I’ve led content transformation and growth at established brands including Health magazine, Condé Nast Traveler, Disney, and People Inc.—building scalable teams, modernizing content operations, and translating storytelling into measurable business impact.

My work has earned industry recognition from organizations including the Folio Awards and Signal Awards, with featured presentations at BrandStorytelling at Sundance. I hold executive certifications from Cornell University and Yale School of Management, an MFA in Nonfiction Writing from Sarah Lawrence College, and a bachelor’s degree from Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications.

I am most energized in roles where content has a clear mandate, creative leaders are trusted with decision-making authority, and storytelling is treated as a strategic growth engine—not just a function.

Uncover new revenue streams developed through innovative content strategies

Create a unified brand voice that resonates across all customer touchpoints

Lead teams that execute with both vision and precision

Execute on data-informed creative decisions that maximize impact and ROI

Develop award-winning creative initiatives that generate measurable business results

Shape a distinctive brand identity that stands out in a crowded marketplace

  • Wine Enthusiast Magazine

    Wine Enthusiast Magazine

    Brand: Wine Enthusiast

    My Contribution: VP of Content

    Results: Wine Enthusiast commissioned renowned artist Noah Verrier to paint an original piece for the cover of this year’s California Issue of the Wine Enthusiast print magazine. The original canvas was auctioned off to money for the California Community Foundation’s Wildfire Recovery Fund.

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  • Vinfamous Podcast

    Vinfamous Podcast

    Brand: Wine Enthusiast

    My Contribution: Conceived, launched, and served as lead creator and producer of the branded podcast Vinfamous.

    Result: Debuted at #1 on Apple Podcasts (Food) and #11 on Spotify in its first week, establishing a high-visibility new brand platform. Season one delivered 20K+ downloads, an 87% average consumption rate, 78% engaged listeners, and a 35% listen-to-follow conversion rate, while expanding Wine Enthusiast’s reach to a broader, more female audience without compromising premium brand positioning.

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  • Diet Culture in the Age of Body Positivity

    Diet Culture in the Age of Body Positivity

    Brand: Health Magazine

    My Contribution: Lead creator & editor

    Result: The series earned top industry recognition, including a Folio Eddie Award for Editorial Excellence, two Digital Health Awards, and an Honorable Mention from the Writer’s Digest Awards, strengthening the brand’s editorial reputation and authority.

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  • Curated Collections

    Curated Collections

    Brand: Wine Enthusiast

    My Contribution: Developed and led an integrated brand-awareness strategy for both Shop and Magazine by curating commerce products into editorial-style features that aligned with reader interests and premium brand positioning.

    Result: Drove approximately 360K incremental Shop impressions among magazine readers, increasing exposure to commerce offerings within a trusted editorial context.

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  • Direct Mailer Creative

    Direct Mailer Creative

    Brand: Wine Enthusiast

    My Contribution: Led the marketing creative team in redesigning direct mail assets to align with the newly established Brand Book, elevating the tone toward a more premium, luxury-forward positioning.

    Result: Within the first four months of the redesign, catalog AOV increased by 24%. Postcards delivered exceptional performance, generating ~22x–31x ROAS, driven by consistently high AOVs ($1,350–$2,000) from premium purchases.

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  • In-house Ad Campaigns

    In-house Ad Campaigns

    Brand: Wine Enthusiast

    My Contribution: Spearheaded an integrated print-to-commerce campaign to reposition Wine Enthusiast Shop for magazine subscribers.

    Result: Drove ~300K subscriber impressions and increased Shop page visits via QR code scans by more than 170x year over year (from 4 in 2024 to 700+ in 2025).

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  • Cork + Compass Ad Campaigns

    Cork + Compass Ad Campaigns

    Brand: Wine Enthusiast

    My Contribution: Creative Director & Copywriter
    Cork+Compass Travel. Partnered with cross-functional teams to lead creative direction and copy for a new business launch, supporting customer acquisition and reservations for branded travel experiences.

    04 25 cork and compas plan your escape homepage a gettyimages 1920x1080
  • Misdiagnosed: Advocacy series featuring stories of women whose symptoms were ignored or dismissed

    Misdiagnosed: Advocacy series featuring stories of women whose symptoms were ignored or dismissed

    Brand: Health Magazine

    My Contribution: Creator & editor

    Result: Drove significant brand reach and engagement across platforms, generating nearly 300K unique views, a record-breaking 261K+ IGTV views (the highest-performing video post in Health’s history), and 50K average O&O views per episode—more than 3× the site’s typical video benchmark—establishing Misdiagnosed as a standout, high-impact franchise that expanded audience engagement and reinforced Health’s authority in patient-centered storytelling.

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  • How Do You Convince Someone That Who You Were at 15 Is Not Who You Are Today?

    How Do You Convince Someone That Who You Were at 15 Is Not Who You Are Today?

    Brand: Fusion

    My Contribution: Writer

    Result: Contributed a deeply personal, narrative-driven essay that reinforced Fusion’s reputation for elevating complex identity, justice, and generational-change stories, strengthening the brand’s voice among socially engaged, younger audiences.

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  • When It’s Not Just a Drill: An Inside Look at The Rising Norm of School Lockdowns

    When It’s Not Just a Drill: An Inside Look at The Rising Norm of School Lockdowns

    Brand: Babble

    My Contribution: Writer

    Result: Delivered a timely, reported feature that expanded Babble’s authority beyond parenting lifestyle content into urgent cultural and public-safety conversations, deepening trust with millennial parents navigating real-world anxieties.

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  • The One We Left Behind

    The One We Left Behind

    Brand: Huffington Post

    My Contribution: Writer

    Result: Published a reflective personal essay on one of the internet’s most influential opinion platforms, contributing to HuffPost’s role as a forum for emotionally resonant storytelling that drove empathy, discussion, and shareability at scale.

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  • I’m An Undocumented Single Mother, & ‘The American Dream’ Is Not What I Thought

    I’m An Undocumented Single Mother, & ‘The American Dream’ Is Not What I Thought

    Brand: Romper

    My Contribution: Writer

    Result: Authored a first-person narrative amplifying immigrant and single-mother perspectives, aligning with Romper’s mission to foreground underrepresented voices and strengthening the brand’s credibility as a platform for inclusive, socially conscious storytelling.

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  • If You Can Still Call It Life After Losing a Child: The Story of Jessica Santos and Gisela Marin

    If You Can Still Call It Life After Losing a Child: The Story of Jessica Santos and Gisela Marin

    Brand: New Yorkers Against Gun Violence

    My Contribution: Writer

    Result: Crafted a powerful long-form profile that humanized the impact of gun violence through intimate storytelling, supporting NYAGV’s advocacy efforts by pairing emotional resonance with policy-driven awareness.

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  • The New Rolling Stone Album Guide: Completely Revised and Updated 4th Edition

    The New Rolling Stone Album Guide: Completely Revised and Updated 4th Edition

    Brand: Rolling Stone

    My Contribution: Research Editor

    Result: Helped support the definitive, fully revised edition of Rolling Stone’s Album Guide, reinforcing the brand’s cultural authority and editorial rigor in music criticism while shaping a reference work used by fans, critics, and industry professionals alike.

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  • Eddie and Ozzie awards

    “How the NBA Became a Wine League”—WineEnthusiast.com

    2024 Ozzies > Illustration: Consumer/Custom Content Marketing >

    Oversaw nominated creative team.

  • Eddie ozzie 2025

    The Travel Issue—Wine Enthusiast Magazine

    2025 Eddies > Full Issue > Custom Content/Marketing

    Oversaw award-winning creative team.

  • Image

    “In War-Torn Ukraine, Nightlife Offers a Fleeting Escape”—WineEnthusiast.com

    2025 Best Cocktail & Spirits Writing

    Oversaw award-winning edit team.

  • Eddie ozzie 2025

    “A Vineyard Grows at Ground Zero”— WineEnthusiast.com

    2025 Eddies > Essays and Criticism > Culture, Society & Commentary

    Oversaw award-winning creative team.

  • Eddie and Ozzie awards

    The New York City Issue—Wine Enthusiast Magazine

    2024 Eddies > Full Issue > Consumer > Epicurean

    Oversaw award-winning editorial team.

  • Eddie and Ozzie awards

    In War-Torn Ukraine, Nightlife Offers a Fleeting Escape—Wine Enthusiast Magazine

    2024 Eddies > Single Article > Consumer > Culture / Community

    Oversaw award-winning editorial team.

  • Eddie and Ozzie awards

    Article Series, “Diet Culture in the Age of Body Positivity”—Health.com

    2024 Eddies > Editorial Excellence

    Creator, producer.

  • Signal awards

    “Murder in the Vineyard”—Vinfamous Podcast

    2023 Signal Awards > Best True Crime > Individual Episode

    Creator, producer.

  • Signal awards

    Vinfamous Podcast

    2023 Signal Awards > Best Limited Series & Specials

    Creator, producer.

  • Brand Storytelling

    Vinfamous Podcast

    BrandStorytelling at Sundance 2023 > Featured Podcast of the Year

    Creator, producer.

  • “True Vision”

    In life, you don’t often have the opportunity to work with someone who has true vision. I consider myself lucky to have had the chance to work for Dara Pettinelli, someone who really does. Dara sees the media world as it could be and probably should be, and I hope someday it exists as she envisions.

    Iva-Marie Palmer

    Former direct report at Disney

  • “Can tackle any challenge”

    I can’t say enough about Dara’s ability to lead. She’s dedicated, knowledgeable and above all else a true advocate for her team. From trimming budgets to writing thoughtful editorial pieces, Dara is truly a hands-on manager who can tackle any challenge facing her department. She would be an incredible asset to any company.

    Jon Fairbanks

    Former direct report at Disney

  • “People like Dara make the world for the rest of us”

    Every once in awhile, I come across a great TALENT. Dara is one of those extraordinary talents. She rolls out of bed and knows how to do just about anything… and when she can’t, she quickly figures it out. She’s passionate about the details, has her finger on the pulse of what’s happening, and will run in front of a train to stop something she doesn’t believe in. People like Dara make the world for the rest of us.

    Michael Streefland

    Former colleague at Disney

  • “Digital Ninja”

    Dara is a hard charging digital ninja who is also a fabulous writer and reporter. She understands headlines that grab and how to jump on a moment in the news to drive up page views. She is smart and has high standards which she never lets go of. Plus she is wickedly funny, personally and in her writing.

    Lesley Jane Seymour

    Former boss at More magazine and Covey Club

Select Brands & Consulting

Consulting for Startups

Content, membership, e-commerce
Supported digital strategy and audience growth by optimizing UX, identifying competitive opportunities, and contributing to membership, pricing, and content production efficiencies.

Edtech, e-learning, video content
Led competitive and market research to identify growth opportunities in the e-learning space while overseeing all content strategy and production across formats.

E-commerce
Contributed to brand growth by recommending social and content marketing strategies to boost engagement, followers, and sales.