Sarah Berndt takes over publishing management of the Beobachter and Landliebe editions
Sarah Berndt is the new publishing director of the Beobachter and Landliebe editions. She succeeds Urs Gysling, who is taking on a new management role within Ringier Axel Springer Switzerland as a member of the management board of the recently acquired subsidiary Gryps.
After more than ten years, Urs Gysling, 58, hands over the management of the Observer- and LandLove-Edition into new hands. His successor Sarah Berndt, 42, joined the company in August 2018 as text producer, deputy head of production and deputy page maker at the Observer active. She is the author of several Observercover stories and was nominated for the Zurich Journalism Award 2019 as co-author of "Verbotene Kinder" (published on September 27, 2019). Prior to that, she worked in various capacities for TX Group, including in the convergent newsroom of "Tages-Anzeiger" as a multimedia producer. Sarah Berndt holds a Master in Transdisciplinarity in the Arts from the Zurich University of the Arts and a degree in Philosophy of Science, Physics and Mathematics from the University of Bern.
"I am very much looking forward to continuing the approximately 40-year success story of the Observer-edition and since 2016 also the Landliebe-edition," says Sarah Berndt. "My focus is on the further development of an attractive book program. In addition, I want to work with the team to design new formats to appeal to an even broader readership and tap into new target groups."
Urs Gysling, long-time Head of Edition and member of the Observer-Executive Board, will assume responsibility for content on the Executive Board of Gryps, the SME platform acquired by Ringier Axel Springer Schweiz in September 2021. In this role, he reports directly to Alexander Theobald, CEO of Ringier Axel Springer Switzerland and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Gryps.
"Urs Gysling has done an extraordinary job for the edition for over ten years and has written many exciting and beneficial Observer-guidebook," says Roland Wahrenberger, Chief Marketing Officer of Ringier Axel Springer Switzerland. "On his initiative, in 2016 the LandLove-With its beautifully designed books focused on enjoyment and culinary delights, the edition found a loyal readership right from the start. Sarah Berndt, an experienced and successful observer, will continue to develop the edition with great energy and ensure exciting new publications."
