Bauer Media has announced that Fiorella Di Santo will be stepping down from her role as general manager of publishing and will leave the business at the end of the month.

Di Santo joined Bauer in 2016 as its director of sales, before being appointed as general manager of publishing in September last year.

Paul Dykzeul, CEO of Bauer for Australia and New Zealand, said: “Fiorella’s contribution to the business in just two-and-a-half years has been considerable.

“She joined as director of sales and then moved into the role of GM publishing, overseeing luxury, fashion, food and homes.

“In this role, Fiorella was instrumental in the acquisition of both Inside Out and Country Style magazines from News, which now sees Bauer’s homes portfolio lead in its category. Fiorella will be greatly missed by the team.”

Commenting on her departure, Di Santo said: “I’ve enjoyed my time at Bauer, working on beautiful brands and learning from some of the most creative and talented people in the industry.

“Having been involved in the homes title acquisition from News and part of the team that celebrated key milestones such as Australian House and Garden’s 70th birthday and Harper’s BAZAAR’s 20th anniversary has been a real highlight.

“Now feels like the right time to do other things. I wish the Bauer team every success for the future.”

The announcement of Di Santo’s departure comes shortly after Bauer revealed it was axing Cosmopolitan magazine in Australia after 45 years.

Last month, Bauer swung the axe on 13 roles as part of a restructure of its editorial teams for ELLE and Harper’s BAZAAR, and saw the departures of of Harper’s BAZAAR editor-in-chief Kellie Hush and ELLE editor-in-chief Justine Cullen.