Meetup HQ Blog

Fellow Meetup Organizers,

Good news: Today we welcome Union Square Ventures to the Meetup family.

USV is a small investment firm with a big reputation these days. They're investing money and time into Meetup to help make the dream of "a Meetup Everywhere about Most Everything" a reality ("a MEME", as we say).

I'm proud to report that Meetup HQ recently had our first almost-profitable (a.k.a. self-sustaining) month, mostly thanks to you pitching-in with Organizer fees.

So why take an investment? Because the world needs more Meetups -- and more powerful Meetups.  We're at-risk of living in front of screens, endlessly Twittering and not forming powerful local community groups. There's endless possibilities to make Meetup  better able to help people self-organize powerful local groups! With a shaky economy, it's best to secure and strengthen Meetup for the future with an investor.

Why USV?

1. They're good people. USV was started just a few years ago by 2 guys, Brad & Fred. We've known Brad & Fred for many years. I met Brad 13 years ago, when I was 23 and had just started a company and didn't understand anything about investors. Brad contacted me out of the blue, we met for coffee, and although he didn't invest in that company, we stayed in touch. Brad's a member of the Meetup I Organize (the NY Tech Meetup) and he now joins Meetup's Board of Directors. (Andrew & Albert at USV are fantastic, too.)

2. They keep good company. No investor has a better portfolio of startups that could give people enormous power in the future. There's a revolutionary DIY spirit in there. Meetup is about DIO (Do It Ourselves), so there's no better investor for Meetup right now than USV.

3. They're local. Meetup's other major investors DFJ, Omidyar Network, and eBay are based in Silicon Valley. Meetup HQ is in NYC. They're all incredibly helpful, but as you know, we believe in the power of face-to-face. Being local means more frequent face-to-face help.

4. They understand platforms and have cred amongst the internet developer-types who pay attention to them...  and we want those people to know about our new API!

5. They understand the potential for Meetups. This is important because it's like they're investing in your Meetup Group! You won't feel it right away, but the USV investment will help you make stronger Meetup communities in the future. We'll hire more people to make Meetup easier, more powerful, more global... Welcome so you hopefully can have better Meetups, more flexibility, and a stronger community; And if you want it, maybe you'll get advice from other Organizers, build a real organization, attract more members, attract sponsors, manage your Meetup's money. Maybe you'll make a living from serving your community as a Meetup Organizer. Nothing's more powerful than people self-organizing.

Welcome USV! (See their announcement here.)