CNN – Dec 13 – Whitney Wolfe Herd launched Bumble, the female-focused dating app, in 2014. Wolfe Herd's vision – that the app would empower women to make their own choices, rather than burden them with it – caught on. Last year, she made a strategic decision to push Bumble into India. "The most traditional, the most misogynistic mindsets globally – those markets for us are completely wide-open prairies," she said. Now, Wolfe Herd is preparing for one of her biggest challenges yet: Taking over the CEO seat of Bumble's parent company MagicLab four months after former owner Andrey Andreev was accused of racism and sexism, allegations that he has denied. Investment firm Blackstone bought the company from the Russian billionaire last month, in a deal that valued it at $3B. On top of growing Bumble and shifting cultural norms, Wolfe Herd is set on changing laws in 2020. Earlier this year, she and Bumble successfully advocated for a new Texas law outlawing digital sexual harassment. The company is now working with Senator Ling Ling Chang in California to get a similar law passed in that state. Wolfe Herd said the hope is to get a federal law passed, something the company is "fiercely committed to."
Category: Bumble
Beauty Brands Are Partnering With Bumble
GLOSSY – Dec 4 – Bumble is offering its users daily, weekly and monthly giveaways from beauty, lifestyle and fashion brands. Six companies participated including Becca, Erno Lazslo, True Botanicals, Love Wellness, Ouai and Ipsy. While brands did not have to pay to participate, they did commit to gifting four products for the giveaways, and promoting the partnership through their own Instagram and email.
Chappy Breaks Into the World of Gay Male Dating
AUSTIN MONTHLY – Dec 2 – Created in the same spirit as its sister company Bumble, Chappy is cultivating a welcoming atmosphere that challenges deeply entrenched negative norms between gay men. Similar to Bumble, the app's branding and marketing revolve around empowerment, accountability, acceptance, and kindness. Chappy limits matches to people who are mutually interested in one another, and users need to verify their identities.
Tinder or Bumble – The Clichés of ‘Big Dating’
USA TODAY – Nov 21 – Swiping to find a date came into the cultural lexicon when Tinder launched in 2012 and revolutionized the online dating scene. "It's a game, it's fire and it's fun," said online dating consultant Mark Brooks about Tinder. Brooks said the app can skew toward audiences looking for a "casual" encounter, whereas other apps, like Hinge, tend to build more "meaningful" relationships. "Since Match Group bought Hinge, they positioned Hinge as 'long-term' and Tinder as 'casual'," Brooks says. "I always regret going on a date from Tinder," said 28-year-old Justyna Kedra, a frequent user of Hinge, Bumble and, sometimes, Tinder. "I feel that people are very transactional. There's no depth." Hinge's approach tends to focus more on getting to know someone based on their politics and religion. According to Hinge's global head of communications Jean-Marie McGrath, 99% of the app's users are college-educated. The app gained recognition when 2020 presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg publicly said that he met his partner on Hinge.
by Coral Murphy
See full article at USA Today
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CA Lawmaker Partners With Bumble to Outlaw Unwanted Nudes
NEWSWEEK – Nov 22 – State Senator Ling Ling Chang of Diamond Bar, California announced Thursday that she plans to introduce a proposed law in January that would make it a misdemeanor to send explicit photos in texts or online to people who did not ask for them. Lawmakers in TX partnered with Bumble to pass a similar bill which took effect in September.
Tiffany Haddish Partners With Bumble To Offer Dating Tips and Advice
ESSENCE – Nov 18 – Comedic actress and TV host Tiffany Haddish has teamed up with the Bumble to give singles tips to beef up their dating success. Bumble users in "date" mode can match with Tiffany's in-app card to see her top dating tips and advice. Additionally, users who connect with Haddish's card will get the chance to have a one-on-one profile makeover from the Girl's Trip star via Bumble's video chat feature.
Q&A With Priti Joshi, VP of Strategy at Bumble
YOURSTORY – Nov 18 – Bumble's VP of Strategy, Priti Joshi, talks about her journey with the company, and how it is trying to put women first when it comes to making important moves in life. Priti is a second-generation Indian American based in Austin, Texas. Born in Mesquite, Texas, she grew up in Dallas, and as a child participated in Indian dance competitions, completed her undergraduate degree in Business Honors and Finance from the University of Texas in 2009, and a Master's in Business Administration from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania in 2014. She worked for over seven years at McKinsey. At Bumble Priti looks after strategy and expanding Bumble's presence in international markets.
Q: What does your role at Bumble entail? How big is the India team?
A: I focus heavily on expanding Bumble's presence internationally. Our team on the ground in India is small but mighty, and our global teams – specifically at our HQ – also dedicate a lot of time and resources to supporting our efforts in India.
Q: What does Bumble offer the modern Indian woman that is different from other networking and dating apps?
A: We developed a feature specific to India where only the first initial of a woman's name would show on her Bumble Date profile. We make it easy to 'Block and Report' anyone you don't want to see on the app and we have 'Photo Verification' and 'Request Photo Verification' to help ensure that the person you're connecting with is who they say they are.
Q: How has Bumble been received in India?
A: Women in India have made the first move over three million times, and are sending 2x as many messages as women in the rest of the world. Furthermore, 60% of women in India use two or more modes within Bumble.
Q: What kind of market does India present in terms of size, geography, and culture?
A: In urban India, the percentage of women mobile Internet users stands at 40% and men stands at 60%. We've also seen that from a user behaviour perspective, these smartphone savvy women above the age of 19 have the highest propensity for social networking, browsing and text chatting.
Top Grossing Dating Apps Worldwide for October 2019
SENSORTOWER – Nov 13 – The top grossing dating app worldwide for Oct 2019 was Tinder with ~$88.7M in user spending, which represented 18% growth from Oct 2018. ~43% of Tinder's revenue was from the U.S., followed by 7% from UK and 5% from Australia. Bumble was #2 with ~$20M in gross revenue, which represented 44% growth YOY. 77% of Bumble's revenue was from the U.S., followed by 9% from UK. The next top grossing app was Tantan, followed by Pairs and Badoo.
OPW Podcast – The Top Dating Industry News for Nov 12th
OPW – Nov 12 – Match Results, Magic Lab Acquisition, The Meet Group, Facebook & Tinder whitelisting.
For the top weekly dating industry news in ~2 minutes subscribe to OPW's Two Minute Tuesdays (TMT) podcast on Breaker, Google podcasts, Spotify, Anchor.
Andrey Andreev Sells Stake of Bumble’s Parent Company MagicLab to Blackstone
by Ingrid Lunden
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