A stalwart company in St. Louis’ startup sector is rebranding.
St. Louis advertising technology company LockerDome said Monday it has rebranded as Decide, a move that comes after it experienced rapid revenue and headcount growth in 2021. The company said its new name better reflects its technology’s ability to use machine learning and data to help advertisers and publishers determine when to place advertisements.
“A lot of what we want to accomplish is being able to deliver a product that can drive real world results. We think that a name like Decide is a much better launching point for us to go out and accomplish that,” said Ryan Allen, president of Decide.
Downtown West-based Decide began operations in 2008 as LockerDome, with a focus on developing a sports-focused social media platform. In 2015, it began to pivot by focusing on creating technology to help advertisers and publishers better monetize digital advertisements.
Decide said the decision to ditch the LockerDome name follows rapid growth in the past year. The company says it is profitable and reported 2021 revenue of $32.2 million, up 38% year over year. It hopes to have revenue north of $50 million in 2022. In 2021, Decide also grew its headcount, expanding from 51 employees to 81.
Meanwhile, Decide will expand its geographic footprint this spring by opening an office in Austin, Texas.
“Austin is a great place to be in our industry. There’s going to be a lot of talent that we can attract and go out and build great products,” Allen said.
For Decide, its rebranding initiative was completed within two months and accomplished internally, said Tyler Kolle, the company’s lead analyst of strategic initiatives.
“I think it speaks to the broader culture, which is we bring things in house when we can because we want to understand all of the mechanisms that are driving our business. The rebrand is no exception to that,” he said.
With its new name, the former LockerDome is expanding its technology. On Monday, it unveiled its machine learning and advertising decision platform called Decision Marketplace. It said the bolstered technology provides for the “rapid development of machine learning models to render automated, intelligent decisions and optimize outcomes for brands and publishers."
