Platforms like TikTok and Spotify have experimented with events on their platforms, but rather than focusing on concerts or large gatherings, events startup Posh is focusing on intimate gatherings of up to a few hundred people: friends, friends of friends, people you meet at parties.
The company today announced $22 million in Series A funding led by Goodwater Capital with participation from FirstMark Capital, Companyon Ventures and Epic Ventures. The company has previously raised a total of $31 million from investors including Companyon Ventures, Epic Ventures, Day One Ventures and Pareto Holdings.
With this funding, the startup aims to expand its team in the areas of product and go-to-market from 26 to 40. Additionally, it wants to update its app with improved suggestions for relevant events.
The company has 2 million registered users and the lifetime experiences booked through its tools are worth $95 million.
Hatim Kheti, a partner at Goodwater Capital, said his firm decided to invest in the company because it believes the next big social platform will be one that brings people together physically.
“Consumers use Posh to discover the best events, experience a sense of connection and belonging, and ultimately grow their own social communities on the platform,” Keti said in an email.
Expanding the consumer platform
The company started in 2020 as a SaaS offering for events listed on other websites and services, but now plans to focus on its own app, which was launched to the public last October. The app is like a TikTok for events, where you can scroll vertically to find events you're interested in. Posh currently only offers an iOS app.
Co-founders Avante Price and Eli Taylor Lemire told TechCrunch that orders through the marketplace app accounted for 6% of ticket orders in January, jumping to 12% in June. Posh aims to capture a 25% market share of all tickets sold directly through its app by the end of the year.
Image credit: Posh
Previously, Posh's app showed nearby and trending events, and this week the company launched a feature that lets users import their contact book to see which of their friends are on the platform.
In the coming months, the company plans to introduce a “For You” feed that will be based on signals like a user's direct and secondary connections and the types of events they've attended.
“Posh is a platform where it's all about who's there. If you know five or 10 people and you're going to a 500-person event, not only do you want to socialize with them, you also want to spend time with people who are similar to you,” Price said.
Diversifying Events
The co-founders told TechCrunch that the app hosts about 5,000 events a month, many of which focus on nightlife and social friendships, but the company also wants to branch out into fitness, art, dining and other areas.
Additionally, Posh has sought to build a community for event organizers by hosting events for them and providing tutorials on the app and other aspects of event organizers like finding a venue, booking a photographer, etc. The company wants to help creators like podcasters connect with top audiences at in-person events, and it also wants to enable brands to engage with community members at regular smaller events.
Opportunities and challenges in addressing the event space
The company doesn't charge organizers a fee, but it does take a 10% + $0.99 fee from people who book tickets. The startup has had some profitable months, but overall it is not profitable and is now focused on growth.
The founders say that roughly 300,000 people make 350,000 bookings on the platform each month, meaning many are still one-time users, but personalization could help turn them into repeat customers.
The challenge for the startup is to introduce more events of different genres to the platform. Currently, business is strong in the second half of the year, but Posh wants to break even in the first half.
“When you come back from a city break, you want to go out and socialize, but you don't always want to go to a club. That's why it's our job to increase the supply of events. We believe consumer demand is plateauing, but the supply of events isn't always there. That's where we can help,” the founders said.
Drake Rehfeldt, principal at Day One Ventures, told TechCrunch in an email that Posh is unique in that it helps people find “things that are underground and unique.” Additionally, Price and Taylor Lemire's past experience in the events space will help accelerate the startup's growth.