Maxine Builder is the deputy editorial director at Wirecutter, the product recommendation service at The New York Times, where she leads the site’s short-form content strategy. That includes launching editorial series that fuel audience growth, experimenting with new storytelling formats, building scalable newsroom workflows, and packaging stories to create moments that matter, both on- and off-platform.

From 2021 to 2024, Maxine led The Strategist, New York Magazine’s product review website. In that role, she developed columns and editorial franchises, expanded into new areas of coverage, and launched newsletters (including Secret Strategist and The Strategist Beauty Brief)—all while ensuring a crisp voice and tone. Under her leadership, The Strategist was named Hottest in E-commerce on Adweek’s Hot List, which noted, “Clever, stylish and with just a touch of lip, The Strategist has elevated the tedious world of product recommendations into high art.”

As a writer, Maxine has interviewed countless celebrities about their favorite things; tested kitchen gear, beauty hacks, and tech gadgets; and wrote the definitive oral history of Four Loko. She’s a service journalist at heart, and in 2021, she received an ASME Next Award, which honors outstanding achievement by magazine journalists under the age of 30.

With sharp storytelling instincts, a strategic mindset, and a keen eye for trends, Maxine is an expert at balancing editorial ambition with business goals. She knows how to create content strategies that work for audiences, editorial teams, and bottom lines, and she thrives on helping creative teams do their best, most ambitious work.