Tidemark Invests in Kajabi

What’s behind The Big Three? As a growth equity firm, we aspire to invest in the high point of excellence. We look for category leaders at the confluence and collision of ideas and domains.

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We are proud to invest in Kajabi, a content and ecommerce engine that makes it easy for knowledge-based entrepreneurs to launch their business. A powerful tool for experts across industries, Kajabi has grown exponentially since its founding in 2010. That growth switched into high gear with the pandemic-bolstered demand for online services and the SaaS platform’s meteoric rise shows no signs of slowing down.

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Here are the top three reasons we believe in Kajabi:

#1 Secular Tailwinds

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Consumers are consuming more and more instruction and teaching online.  Entrepreneurs are complementing or pivoting their mainstreet businesses to digital. Shelter in place was step-function tsunami tailwind to both.

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Kajabi sits at the confluence of these two trends as an easy digital solution to help teachers, instructors and coaches to bring their expertise and services online. The concept was initially conceived of in the California backyard of founder/ creator Kenny Rueter.  Reuter spent his spare time making a PVC sprinkler toy for his young sons. The contraption was not only a success in Reuter’s family, but soon extended far beyond the neighborhood. Reuters realized the value of sharing how he built his creation, but found that there wasn’t an easy way to bring his idea to market. Reuter started Kajabi to solve that need.

#2 Category Leadership

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With Kajabi, plug and play really means plug and get paid. Kajabi’s effortless user experience and powerful functionality make it easier than ever to bring invaluable insight right to the eyes, hands, and minds of potential customers.  Not only does Kajabi offer the best product, they also have the most vibrant community of user/ coaches.  It’s no wonder they are the largest player in the industry.

#3 Superlative Fundamentals

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As a product-led company, bolstered by robust tailwinds, Kajabi is one of the most compelling combinations of growth and profitability metrics we have seen.  Its numbers stand alone, but the real magic is in its additive value for society. Kajabi’s success begets its users’ success. The nearly 50 million customers it serves have leveraged the platform to generate $1.5B in GMV annually*, a significant injection of both funds and ideas into the economy. Kajabi is a massive business with equally massive potential—it is a critical and foundational service in a hypergrowth sector with no ceiling in sight.

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At Tidemark, we are thrilled to help power Kajabi’s incredible momentum. Fellow Scott Wagner has joined the board of directors and Venture Partner Tim Barash is an advisor to the company.   We’re all in!

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A word from Kajabi
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“We have gotten to know the Tidemark team very well since our fundraise, and more importantly, as a partner on Kajabi’s journey. From the onset, their fundamental understanding of how to build a growth-stage SaaS business helped us quickly realize the potential of working together. We all speak the same language, enabling deeper conversations on a wide variety of topics that helps us set company strategy and continue to support the success of the business. Tidemark also introduced us to their network of Fellows, a group of seasoned entrepreneurs and operators who bring immediate industry expertise to different facets of building a business. From payments to platforms to growth, these Fellows provide us with advice and guidance as we expand our product and market footprint. Dave also introduced us to one of our Board Members, Scott Wagner (a Tidemark Fellow and ex-CEO of GoDaddy) who has been instrumental in helping us navigate our next phase of growth with a keen eye towards the operational side of company building. Kajabi is a mission-driven organization, enabling Knowledge Entrepreneurs to build and scale their businesses however they choose. Given Tidemark’s commitment to companies like ours, and their Foundation’s promise to give back to the communities that align with their investments, we could not have chosen a better partner for Kajabi’s future.” – Ahad Khan, CEO of Kajabi

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*Source: Kajabi press release, Kajabi Raises $550 Million and Garners Valuation Over $2Billion with Growth Financing Led by Tiger Global (May 4, 2021)‍