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Meet the Sun Shopping Team of Experts

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Meet the Sun Shopping Team of Experts
Meet the Sun Shopping Team of Experts

The Sun Shopping section is a hub for you to discover a wide range of unbiased product reviews, product roundups, deals and shopping guides.

Our shopping experts and writers have a wealth of knowledge and expertise across many categories including fashion, beauty, tech, electricals, fitness and home.

With our combined years of e-commerce experience, we aim to test a huge variety of products, from mattresses to makeup, providing insights you can trust.

We have a robust process for reviewing items, ensuring we always look at value for money, performance, longevity and functionality to help guide your purchasing decisions.

We are also well-equipped to spot genuine offers and real discounts worthy of being shouted about, whether you are shopping during Black Friday and Cyber Monday, or just looking for a seasonal bargain.

We even have exclusive discount codes , which are hand-tested and verified by our team, available through our Sun Vouchers platform to help you save cash when shopping online too.

Plus you can also stay in the loop with all the latest reviews, shopping news and offers by signing up for our Sun Shopping weekly newsletter.

Our mission is always to write authoritative, honest and accurate shopping content on products that offer you, the consumer, the best value and highest quality.

Find out more about our Sun Shopping Team below.


Our Editorial Team:

Chantelle Symester, Lead E-commerce and Affiliates Editor

Chantelle is the Lead E-commerce and Affiliates Editor for The Sun and oversees all of the deals, reviews and general shopping content that the Sun Shopping Team creates.

The Sun Shopping team covers everything from huge shopping events like Black Friday and Amazon Prime Day to unearthing the newest trends and product launches.

Chantelle has a wealth of experience in e-commerce, having worked for six years on national titles at Reach PLC (The Mirror, The Express, The Daily Star) and agencies creating content for brands like Topman, EasyJet, Virgin Atlantic Blog and more.

When she is not at work she enjoys indulging in sunny holidays to exotic places, improving her downward dog at yoga or looking after her huge collection of plant babies.

You can contact me at

Clara is our team’s Commercial SEO Lead and is responsible for determining and executing our SEO strategy for the Shopping sections on The Sun and The US Sun.

She was originally hired as an SEO Strategist for News UK in 2019 and was promoted to her current role in 2021. During her time at News UK, she’s worked on improving the SEO for various websites and projects, including Sunday Times Driving, The Times, Sun Vouchers, The US Sun andThe Sun

Before News UK, she worked at Houzz as an SEO Specialist for their e-commerce team, where she learned in-depth knowledge about all things interiors, which she put to use in renovating her home and carrying out product reviews. Before Houzz, she was living in Hangzhou, China, and working as an English translator for retail giant, Alibaba.

When she’s not at work, she’s probably either travelling (she almost always has a holiday booked), exercising, or looking after her friend’s and family’s dogs.

You can contact me at:

Joel has been writing for The Sun online since 2017 and currently commissions and writes reviews for the Product Reviews section of the site.

The section spans everything from mattress reviews, meal delivery services, sleep masks and plenty of other things to make your life a little easier.

Joel has written reviews on a wide range of products, from fitness accessories such as dryrobe to beer dispensers and much more.

Before working at The Sun, Joel wrote about sports for The Daily Star before he realised he preferred having weekends to watching football for a job. He can still reliably spell Henrikh Mkhitaryan on the first go, though.

In his spare time, Joel can be found charging around a sports pitch with more animosity than skill and desperately trying to bring his golf handicap down below 30. He graduated with an MA in journalism from Goldsmiths in 2015.

You can contact me at:

Kieran is a Commissioning Editor at Sun Shopping, a role he has occupied since 2021. He works across The Sun and US Sun, writing reviews and newsletters as well as covering the best deals.

He's probably best known for his Oodie review, where he voluntarily published pictures of himself in a fluffy dress. 

Previously, he was a writer at Sunday Times Driving, where he reported on motoring news and wrote car reviews. He graduated from The University of Sheffield in 2019 with a master's degree in Magazine Journalism. 

Outside of work, you can usually find him spending his salary on small plates, making a mess in the kitchen or watching Manchester United on telly.

You can contact me at:

Matt is a Senior Writer in the Shopping section who focuses on tech deals on mobiles, wearables, earbuds, VPNs and Amazon devices. If there’s an iPhone on sale right now, chances are he knows about it. 

Before joining News UK in 2021, Matt wrote for Time Out London, The Week, Expert Reviews, RadioTimes.co.uk and Den Of Geek, covering everything from restaurant reviews to travel features. 

When he’s not at work, he likes painting, going for walks and listening to podcasts (anything to reduce his screen time, basically).

You can contact me at: LinkedIn or check out my website: www.mattbreen.co.uk.

Harriet Flook, Senior E-commerce Writer

Harriet is a Senior E-Commerce Writer for The Sun, specialising in fashion and beauty, she joined the team in 2019 as an E-Commerce Writer and was promoted to her current role in 2021.

She covers the latest fashion and beauty news and deals within the Shopping section to bring readers all of the hottest trends, investment buys and the biggest offers worth buying.

She's obsessed with all things beauty and loves testing out the latest skincare launches and compiling fashion guides on the best high-street buys and how to style them.

Previously, she was Content Commercialisation Editor at The Daily Mirror where she spent three years covering the best deals and sales, and also worked for podcast platform audioBoom, working alongside top names in entertainment to help create and monetise podcasts.

In her spare time, you'll find her hunting around markets, cooking weekend feasts from an ever-expanding cookbook collection, attempting a spin class, or seeking out her next favourite bar on a big walk around the city.

You can contact me at: harriet.flook@news.co.uk. Follow me on Twitter at @harrietkhark.

Natalie Chui, Commissioning Editor

Natalie Chui is a Commissioning Editor in the Sun Shopping team, having joined in 2022.

She specialises in product reviews and round-ups across a broad range of categories including health, fitness, beauty, and food and drink, aiming to help provide the best low-down on the products that are worth the money. 

A fashion journalism graduate of Central Saint Martins, Natalie has spent the last six years as a journalist and editor across national newspapers and magazines, having previously been the Senior Content Writer for The Daily Express, covering travel and food reviews, and Fashion and Beauty Editor at Fenwick. 

She’s also contributed to Stylist, South China Morning Post, gal-dem, Matches Fashion, CR Fashion Book, Love Magazine and more.

In her spare time, she’s a competitive grassroots footballer, and you can find her playing as a right back for Baesianz FC, or deadlifting a new PB in the gym, having been a serious lifter for the past six years. 

You can contact me at: natalie.chui@news.co.uk. Follow me on Twitter and Instagram at @chui_natalie.


Meet Our eCommerce Partnerships Team

Pavlina Theodoulou, Head of Affiliates and Partnerships

Pavlina joined News UK in March 2022 as the Head of Affiliates and Partnerships, leading the eCommerce strategy for The Sun, The Times and TalkSport.

She has nine years of experience in digital marketing and affiliates, having worked for agencies with travel, finance and retail clients.

When she’s not lifting up the ecommerce team you can find her lifting her face, testing out the latest beauty gadgets and skincare products, including the Face Gym Medi Lift Mask and her LED face mask.

Pav is a self confessed beauty and skincare junkie and is also interested in fashion, and you can often find her rifling through luxury sample sales or finding the best designer bargains. 

You can contact me at: pavlina.theodoulou@news.co.uk or connect with me on Linkedin

Aaron Dowler, Strategic Partnerships Lead

Aaron is a key member of our partnerships team, where he manages our vital brand relationships.

He transitioned into marketing eight years ago, armed with a degree in International Events and Marketing from the University of Brighton.

Aaron's professional journey began in New York City as a Corporate Event Manager, where he hosted events for Fortune 500 companies and Governmental officials.

He then shifted to the luxury hospitality sector, working in-house for a small company outside of London. His career path also includes a stint at a marketing agency before joining The Sun ecommerce team where he is today.

Outside of forging amazing partnerships, Aaron is engaged in a journey of radical wellness. He is an avid interior design enthusiast, often sharing his passion through Instagram.

Can’t reach him? Chances are he's either relaxing in his Sauna Blanket or meticulously tracking his sleep data with the Oura Ring.

You can contact me at: aaron.dowler@news.co.uk or connect with me on Linkedin. Follow me on Instagram at @dowlerjameshouse.

Zoe Bennetts, Affiliates Manager

Zoe joined The Sun in 2022 as Strategic Partnerships Executive and moved to the role of Affiliates Manager in 2023, where she now manages The Sun’s affiliate program and portfolio of brand partners.

She broke into the world of affiliates and partnerships at the end of 2021 after a previous career in journalism.

Graduating in 2020 with a first-class degree in fashion journalism from London College of Fashion UAL, Zoe has experience across a variety of publications - from supporting the Harper’s Bazaar team during Fashion Month A/W 2019, to writing for titles such as The Times, GQ, and Fashion Scout.

From 2018 to 2020 Zoe freelanced at The Mail Online for the Femail Fashion Finder team before moving to Liberty where she became head of beauty on the copy team.

Zoe’s passion for wellness, beauty and fashion has only grown since her days at LCF, so you’ll likely see her with her viral Stanley Cup, or heading to bed at 8pm to get a good night’s sleep on her Emma NextGen Premium Plus mattress - health is wealth, right?

You can contact me at: zoe.bennetts@news.co.uk or connect with me on Linkedin.

James Hunt, Strategic Partnerships Executive

James works as the Strategic Partnerships Executive for The Sun and Sun US, working together with brands to create interesting and informative content for The Sun Shopping readers.

Graduating in 2022 with a degree in Media & Communications; he has almost two years of experience in the commercial advertising and marketing industry and before joining The Sun worked for content marketing agency Sunday.

James also has a key interest in health and fitness and takes part in a variety of fitness competitions.

You can contact me at: james.hunt@news.co.uk or connect with me on Linkedin.


The Sun Vouchers

How The Sun helps you save with discount codes

Through our Sun Vouchers platform, The Sun Shopping team works hard to bring you the best vouchers and offers for your favourite UK stores.

We are constantly updating our Sun Voucher store pages with the very best discount codes, as well as regularly testing our codes to ensure the highest standard.

What we do

Finding vouchers to save you money

With Sun Vouchers, we aim to deliver the same high standards and first-class level of accuracy with our voucher codes as do when delivering the news.

Since launching The Sun Vouchers in 2018,  The Sun Shopping team have been sourcing and publishing voucher codes, making it easier for you to access discounts that will help you save on everything from holidays to home essentials.

Our team find you the best savings from almost 800 UK retailers including Marks & Spencer, JD Sports and more.

How do we do it?

Vouchers that are tried and tested

Our team uses their expertise to scour the internet in search of offers, deals and sales that will help you save money at your favourite retailers.

To ensure we deliver the quality you have come to expect from The Sun, The Sun Shopping team regularly tests and verifies every one of the voucher codes in our database.

Where do we find our voucher codes?

With over 8000 codes live monthly, The Sun Shopping team sources our voucher codes from all over the internet and publishes them on our platform so that you can find all your savings in one place.

In addittion to vouchers sourced through newsletters and homepages,

we also work in collaboration with stores and brands to bring exclusive codes and discounts to our readers to be used when shopping online.

How are our vouchers selected?

All The Sun Vouchers discounts are always published with our readers in mind.

To ensure you save as much as possible, we prioritise voucher codes which can be used on a wide range of products and categories.

We try to monitor engagement and satisfaction with our deals and discounts so that we can further curate our discount codes for our users.

These codes are prioritised and placed at the top of the brand voucher page to make them easily accessible to all our users.

How do we test our vouchers?

When a voucher is sourced or provided to us through our close relationships with brands themselves, it is manually tested to verify all of the information is correct including the code itself and its expiry date.

After this, the code is uploaded to our database, available for you to use.

However, our code verification process doesn’t finish there.

The Sun Shopping team is always working to make saving money easier. To do so, our voucher codes are checked regularly for updates or changes.

We also assess our expired codes in case they are still valid to ensure maximum savings for you, our users.

Another way our team works to help you save is through maintaining accurate information on each of our stores.

You can find information about permanent sales, free delivery, student discounts and more on each of our store pages.

Additionally, our team publish guides on all seasonal sale events to help you get everything you need for less.

Disclosure

The Sun is proud to bring you the best voucher codes. As we inform you on every voucher code page, we may earn a commission when you make a purchase using one of our discount codes.

Chantelle Symester

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