Extremely disappointing experience - Anonymous employee Refinery29 Employee Review

1.0
24 Nov 2014
Anonymous employee
Recommend
CEO approval
Business outlook

Pros

1. Nice office 2. Most of the people are smart and really do care about the brand and putting out great work

Cons

Overall, the culture is awful: 1. Extreme disconnect between internal teams-organizational structure makes no sense and doesn't work, especially on the Ad Sales side of the business 2. Competitive vs. collaborative 3. Lots of egos and attitudes 4. ZERO work/life balance, you are expected to always be on...ALWAYS meaning well into the evenings and while on "vacation" 5. Workloads are not realistic or sustainable 6. Cliquey, like high school

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5.0
27 May 2026
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CEO approval
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Pros

Great culture, extremely nice employees, diverse workplace

Cons

Not very cutting edge with their approach to tech

4.0
23 Mar 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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