When I came up with the idea for Eat Your Books in 2007, I could not have envisioned that almost 20 years later, I would be writing this retirement announcement and that the website would have grown into the global phenomenon it is today. My sister Fiona and I built the site because it was a service we wanted for our own cookbook collections, and we reasoned there must be others who would find it useful. EYB has grown into a massive database and search engine of almost three million recipes – but more importantly, it is a community of people who love to share their experiences cooking from books and magazines. Even though I am now retiring – though I will continue as a board member and shareholder for some years – I will still use EYB every day. I can’t imagine life without it.

And it was because the continuation of EYB was so important to us that Fiona and I never wanted to sell the site to a big company (and we had plenty of approaches). We knew they would just want to take the data and close the service, as we had seen happen to many recipe sites over the past two decades. So when Katie Thacher, a long-time EYB member, approached me about building an app based on EYB's data, I saw the chance to pass the reins to the next generation. Katie and our Head of Engineering, Venkat Ramamurthy, bring deep experience from leading technology organizations and are fully up to speed on the latest advancements. The CookShelf app they created is amazing – I now use it as much as I use the website. I am fully confident that they and the rest of the team will grow the business while maintaining the core promise that has made EYB so special to our members. The addition of Karen Quinn as COO will help ensure that EYB and CookShelf will thrive.

Part of the EYB/CookShelf team: Jane, Nathan, Katie, Noa, and Venkat

I have worked alongside Katie and Venkat for the past two years and I could not be happier that they are now at the helm of the company I have put my heart and soul into. They're supported by a fabulous team, including Nathan, Jenny, Noa, Darcie, Nikki, our stellar indexers, and now Karen. The EYB website will soon transition fully to CookShelf, per Katie’s vision, for consistent and modern branding that can help it grow and flourish for many more years. As I said, I will stay involved as a board member and will continue to support Katie and Karen in any way I can. And you will see my comments and recipe notes pop up from time to time – though my new retirement life is so busy! I’ve moved to a coastal town and am getting back into sailing and enjoying more free time.

I have loved getting to know our members over the years – many of you have been with us since the start. I will miss my daily connection with you, though retiring has been easier than I thought it would be, since I am so happy with the direction of the company and the team now steering its course (a sailing metaphor!). Thank you to the EYB team and all our members for helping create our unique service and making the past 19 years such a pleasure.

Fair winds and happy cooking, 

Jane