Go In With Your Eyes Open - Anonymous employee Refinery29 Employee Review

2.0
Feb 2, 2018
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Great resume builder, moves quick so you learn a lot, great place to get started. Generally great people at the associate level.

Cons

Limited opportunities for growth, moves quickly so hard to get a grasp on anything, job security can feel impossible when layoffs are constantly happening. Clearly little to no vision for a sustainable future so that filters down to confusion at the lowest ranks. Raises are like getting blood from a stone, so make sure you negotiate yourself a good starting salary. I would tell people not to work there, but honestly, you're going to if you get a job offer because its a JOB in digital media, and at a brand with a lot of cache. So I get it. I'd probably still go work there again if I had to do it over again, even if future-me were able to pay a "Christmas Carole"-type visit to my bedside to walk me through the years of chaos and low salary I had to deal with. So if you must go work there, go in with your eyes open and think strategically about what is best for you, and don't get lulled into a sense of loyalty to the supposed mission of "helping all women everywhere." Its a business, not a non-profit. The real mission is money, and if Refinery29 were a person, he/she'd step over his/her own bleeding grandmother to get it. Build your brand and voice, get experience, and get out.

Explore other reviews about Refinery29

5.0
May 27, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Great culture, extremely nice employees, diverse workplace

Cons

Not very cutting edge with their approach to tech

4.0
Mar 23, 2026
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

Refinery29 was training day, every day. The pace and creative expectations forced you to sharpen fast. I cut my teeth here over four years and came out a fundamentally better strategist. The work was culturally plugged in, the people were sharp, and you were trusted with real responsibility early. If you wanted to learn how brand, content, and audience intersect at speed, there was no better place.

Cons

The intensity that makes it a great training ground also means the environment runs hot. Not everyone thrives in that — and depending on your team, support structures varied. The company went through a lot of change during my time, which created some instability.

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