Emap Performance, the division housing Emap's celebrity and music magazines, is said to be recruiting celebrity-obsessed journalists to work on major new projects.
The news follows the appointment of Andrew Harrison, who was named as editorial director of Emap Performance last year to research and head up new projects for the division, which is also home to Emap's radio stations.
The planned expansion of Emap Performance comes on the heels of the announcement that lads mag FHM has made nine high-level editorial appointments, all with backgrounds in lifestyle and fashion journalism, as part of an overhaul of the title, which is likely to see it move in the direction of celebrity-friendly Heat.
Recently appointed editor David Davies, who is understood to be planning a major transformation of FHM has recruited Nick Decosemo, the former features editor of the now defunct Sky magazine.
Former managing director of Heat Dominic Smith takes over as managing editor, while the former editor of the BBC's Live and Kicking magazine James Mannion is to become second associate editor.
Damian Foxe, the former editor of FHM Collections, joins as fashion editor-in-chief, while Phil Hilton joins from FHM Bionic to lead the titles news team as reporter editor.
Former Heat art director Lottie Berridge and Company's senior designer Daniel Knight have been drafted into the art desk, while Marsha Arnold from Harpers & Queen and Cosmopolitan, and The Observer's Marcus Mays join to run the picture desk.
Davies said: "Over the last six months, FHM has spent time and money researching what UK men want from their lifestyle magazines. FHM is clearly the leading brand, as such we need to make sure we do not rest on our arse, we need to kick again."
Meanwhile, Emap advertising has promoted its head of digital sales Jane Henley to the position of customer service director.
Henley will be implementing a more focused customer service strategy across the publisher as the result of full customer service audit.
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