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| A group picture of the Big Cabal Media Leadership Team |
While digital media has connected people in ways never
before possible, enabling users to remain informed and maintain relationships
across time and distance, companies in the space have attracted a paltry amount
of funding. In 2021, venture capital invested $115 million in digital media
globally, a tenth of the $1.1billion it funded in 2015, but not much came to
Africa. Digital newsrooms in Africa are more likely to receive story grants
than business funding, with a few exceptions.
Today, one of such exceptions, Big Cabal Media (BCM), a
leading African digital media company, has announced a $2.3 million Seed
funding round, emphasising its commitment to keep building exciting and
authoritative media products and brands.
The new investment round saw participation from existing
investors: Unicorn Capital Partners and Future Africa. New investors such as
Mac Venture Capital and Luminate Capital Partners participated.
Prior to this funding, with just over $600,000 raised in
funding, BCM has grown to become one of the most exciting media and tech
businesses in Africa. Its two major publications, TechCabal and Zikoko, reach
over 30 million people monthly across platforms, with over 170,000 newsletter
subscribers, and a 225% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) between 2018 and
2021.
Founded in 2013 by Bankole Oluwafemi, TechCabal started as a
deliberate effort to cover the burgeoning Nigerian tech ecosystem. While the
publication started out focusing just on the Nigerian startup space, it soon
expanded its coverage to all of Africa. The publication covers startup
fundraises, product launches, expansions, regulatory tussles, and stories of
various players in the digital economy.
A year after TechCabal launched Seyi Taylor joined the
company as co-founder and CEO, while Oluwafemi continued in his role as
Editor-in-Chief. They continued to expand TechCabal’s coverage and scale up its
operations.
In 2016, the duo decided to try something different with the
launch of Zikoko, a publication many likened to Buzzfeed at the time of its
birth. Zikoko has grown from mostly publishing listicles and quizzes to sharing
important stories on every aspect of Nigerians’ lives, earning it “Nigeria’s
most viral publisher” tagline.
Two years after the launch of Zikoko, Tomiwa Aladekomo
joined the company, taking over as CEO. Aladekomo is an experienced media and
marketing professional, who has worked in
a range of businesses across different sectors in both North America and
Africa.
Over the next four years, Aladekomo focused on diversifying
the company’s revenue streams. BCM had derived its income mostly through native
advertising, but Aladekomo oversaw the build-out of an extensive suite of
advertising products across publications.
The company built out a substantial events business;
launched the Cabal Creative content studio, which has served multiple Fortune
500 clients ranging from Google to Coca-Cola; and launched TC Insights, a
digital economy consultancy business.
Under Aladekomo’s leadership, BCM has also embarked on ambitious
projects like Jollof Road, an 80-day adventurous road trip across all mainland
countries in West Africa; and Tech Women Lagos, a multi-sensory exhibition of
50 women in the Lagos technology ecosystem from different backgrounds.
“I joined BCM in 2018, brought on some really talented
people, and we immediately kickstarted a period of experimentation,” Aladekomo
said. “Our experiments encompassed editorial content and approaches, monetisation and even company culture.”
Nine years after its launch, BCM which started as a tech
blog has morphed into a media powerhouse. Its two publications, TechCabal and
Zikoko are experts at creating content that hits the cultural nerve. They go
beyond covering the scenes to creating agenda-setting editorial content, projects,
and events. Cabal Creative and TC Insights
are also supporting hundreds of companies within Africa.
The company also boasts of a laudable alumni network, which
includes Odunayo Eweniyi, CEO and co-founder of Fintech startup Piggyvest and
First Check, a female-led, female-focused, angel fund and investor community;
Osarumen Osamuyi, Partner Manager at Meta; Jola Ayeye, scriptwriter and co-host
of the I Said What I Said (ISWIS)
podcast—one of the most listened to podcasts in Africa—and a host of others. An indication of its investment in its
employees.
“From documented reports and experience, too, very few
people who work for media organisations are offered a competitive salary and
we’d like to be the exception to the norm,” Aladekomo said. “The BCM model has
been tested and proven. In 2021, we quadrupled our 2020 revenue, and over the
last 4 years our CAGR is 225%.”
With this new funding, BCM plans to develop its product
serving, staff, and audience. “We are expanding our video production by
exploring docuseries and short films,” Aladekomo said. “We will be transforming
our studio into a community hub for creatives, and introducing 3 new tech
products, including the Zikoko app and Zikoko Memes 2.0, which first launched
in 2020. We will also be building out new audiences while offering competitive
wages.”
In the past 5 years, some notable fundraises by African
digital media companies include Nigerian media company Stears Business’
$600,000 seed round in 2020 and Ghana’s OMG Digital $1.1m seed funding in
2017. BCM’s progress over the years and
recent fundraise is a noteworthy example of the possibilities and opportunities
in Africa’s digital media sector.
Of the reported $4.3–$5 billion raised by African startups
in 2021 whereby fintech received 53–63% of the volume, digital media companies
are one of many sectors that have traditionally been overlooked in the
conversation of tangible ventures.
“We’re proud to enter this chapter with Big Cabal Media, as
we fully believe in its massive potential for further success, scale and global
impact,” said Marlon Nichols, co-Founder and Managing General Partner at MaC
Venture Capital. “Investing in Africa’s booming digital media sector aligns
perfectly with MaC’s mission of supporting exceptional entrepreneurs building
valuable technology companies that leverage shifts in cultural trends and
behaviours. I have no doubt that BCM will seize this unique opportunity to
continue leading conversations in culture and helping digital consumers access
the information that matters most to them.”