Grapevine, a Boston-based influencer marketing platform for YouTube and Instagram, announced on Thursday that it is selling a majority stake in the company to Chinese media mogul Bruno Wu.
The deal is happening after the company went through Techstars Boston in 2016, the local branch of one of the more prestigious startup accelerators in the country (the company also went through MassChallenge). In the time leading up to the sale, the company has had some staff changes, including the appointment of a new CEO who replaced Grapevine's founder.
Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. The deal is expected to close later this year.
While Wu may not be a household name for most Americans, he is well known in China and Hollywood. He is the founder and CEO of Sun Seven Stars Entertainment & Media Group Limited, one of the largest private media and investment conglomerates in China, through which he launched a $1.6 billion film and TV fund in 2015. He and his wife, Yan Lan, a TV show host and media proprietor, have an estimated net worth of $1 billion, according to Forbes.
"Social content creation is a global phenomenon that has changed the way consumers discover and purchase products," Wu said in a statement. "The Grapevine platform enables streamlined social content development and distribution for our network of partners. We are excited to have them as a partner and help them build a media company with a global footprint."
Grant Deken, co-founder and CEO at Grapevine, told me the sale to Wu will give the company strategic capital and resources to expand to new, international markets. As an influencer marketing platform, Grapevine helps content creators on YouTube and Instagram score sponsorship deals with brands. With Wu's connections, Deken said Grapevine will have access to Wu's network of celebrities who could end up using the platform, as well as Wu's portfolio of brands.
"It gives us access to a large network of companies and affiliates they own or have partnerships with," Deken said.
The deal will also give Grapevine an opportunity to expand into Asian markets, such as China, South Korea and Japan. At the same time, Deken said, Grapevine will continue to expand in the U.S. market, and it is already doing business with companies outside the country, including Australia, United Kingdom, France and some countries in South America.
Grapevine has nearly 94,000 content creators on its platform, and it has worked with big-name brands, such as L'oreal, LG, Walgreens and Qdoba. Sponsorship deals facilitated through Grapevine appear as native advertising videos on YouTube and Instagram, where content creators discuss or promote products while disclosing the sponsorship.
The company's team seems to have shrunk over the past year, with the company's original CEO and founder, Brendan Lattrell, among those who have left. An archived version of Grapevine's web page for its team shows that it had a larger staff last year than it does now, and I also spoke to Lattrell last June for another story on Grapevine.
Deken declined to comment on the specifics of Lattrell's departure, along with the other staff reductions. He said he was asked by Grapevine's board to lead as the company's CEO and that the staff changes were the result of a change in strategy.
"I think we were pretty sales heavy before, so it was sort of a change in the direction of the business," Deken said.
However, Deken added, the company is in hiring mode again, with positions open for product and community management. One of its recent hires is Director of Growth Jed Breed, who co-founded the political community app We The People.
Grapevine previously raised a $1.1 million seed round in February 2015. Investors included Boston Seed Capital, Boston Syndicates and some angel investors, including Diane Hessan, Joe Caruso, Jere Doyle and TJ Mahony.
“Grant and his team have proven that influencer marketing is a data-driven, scalable channel that is solidifying a permanent place in today’s marketing stack," Dave Balter, partner at Boston Seed and chairman of Grapevine's board, said in a statement. "We are excited to see them grow and thrive in this new partnership with Bruno Wu and Sun Seven Stars."
