Reddit Hires Instagram Head of Business Marketing Timo Pelz

Timo Pelz, after eight years at Instagram and Facebook, has been recruited to be Reddit’s first VP of business marketing.

Pelz, who most recently served as Instagram’s head of business marketing, is tasked with setting go-to-market strategy for Reddit’s advertising products spanning the discussion site’s 100,000-plus communities. He will oversee all aspects of business marketing for managed and self-serve ad clients, including product messaging and events. Pelz, based in North Carolina, reports to Reddit CMO Roxy Young.

“As we continue to scale our advertising business and expand to international markets, Timo will be instrumental in elevating and driving Reddit’s unique value proposition for new and existing advertisers,” Young said in announcing the hire.

At Instagram, Pelz led global business marketing across brand and product for the company‘s business and advertising solutions, spanning products including Stories, Explore, Shopping, Branded Content, IGTV and Reels. Prior to Instagram, he led vertical sales and marketing efforts at Facebook, first joining the social-media giant in 2013.

“There’s never been a more meaningful time for online communities and the Reddit platform generally, and I can’t wait to be part of this mission-driven, motivated team,” Pelz commented. He said his favorite subreddits are r/parenting, r/Patriots, r/lawncare, r/TIL and r/whereintheworld.

Pelz holds a bachelor’s degree in North American cultural studies and a master’s degree in political science from the University of Bonn in Germany.

Reddit was founded in 2005 and acquired by Condé Nast in 2006. In 2011, Condé Nast spun out the site; Advance Publications, parent of Condé Nast, retains a minority stake in Reddit. The company is considering an initial public offering after hiring its first-ever CFO, Drew Vollero, who oversaw Snap’s IPO in 2017.