Webtoon Taps Priya Girishankar as Head of Marketing

Webtoon Entertainment, the media company that spearheaded the mainstream embrace of webcomics, has tapped Priya Girishanker as the head of marketing for the company’s global English-language platform.

The executive will be based in the company’s global headquarters in Los Angeles and report to chief strategy officer and head of global Webtoon Yongsoo Kim. She is being tasked with leading marketing strategy and initiatives to accelerate the platform’s next phase of growth. 

Webtoon is already popular among the Gen Z and Gen Alpha crowd thanks to titles such as Lore Olympus, Heartstopper, and Tower of God, titles that have generated billions of view and engaged fans with the stories’ creators. The company has made deals with publishers such as DC and IDW to adapt the latter’s comic for the platform while Netflix, Prime Video, Crunchyroll, among others have made screen translations of Webtoon’s works. The company says it has over 160 million active users.

Considered a seasoned marketing leader with deep expertise in direct-to-consumer strategy and consumer relations marketing, Girishankar brings over two decades of experience at top-tier media and entertainment brands. Girishankar spent nearly 20 years at The Walt Disney Company, where she established and scaled Disney Rewards, the enterprise-wide program that built brand love and fan engagement across business units. As svp, enterprise CRM and GM consumer financial services, Girishankar spearheaded the drive of significant growth, hundreds of millions in annual operating income, and expanding the program to over five million of Disney’s most engaged Guests.

Most recently, she served as executive vp, subscription growth, advertising operations and customer service at the Los Angeles Times, where she established subscription growth strategies to drive profitability and revenue. 

“We’re thrilled to welcome Priya to Webtoon,” said Kim in a statement. “Her ability to build and scale meaningful relationships between brands and consumers is matched by her strategic discipline and passion for storytelling. As we continue to grow our business and connect fans with the stories they love, Priya’s leadership will play a critical role in shaping the next chapter of Webtoon’s growth.” 

Girishankar, who holds a BA in Economics from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from UCLA’s Anderson School of Management, is a member of CHIEF, a national network that supports and inspires women in corporate leadership, and a board member of Girls in Tech LA.