NEW YORK, April 07, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Tribute, the leading group video montage service that creates personalized videos for special occasions, today announces $3 million in its latest seed round led by VC funding and personal investors. Since its inception in 2014, Tribute saw its largest spike in users when COVID 19 struck in 2020 – leaving loved ones to celebrate life’s biggest moments virtually. The company temporarily waived the $29 fee for its basic service in March of 2020 to encourage individuals worldwide to create and send Tributes as a way to stay connected and spread love, gratitude and encouragement. This offering led to the company growing 2000% in just three months.
After seeing two years of consistent growth, Tribute finalized its latest round of funding led by Reign Ventures and bolstered by personal investments from prominent entrepreneurs, including: Lavinia Errico, Co-founder of Equinox; Gunnar Lovelace, Founder and Co-CEO of Thrive Market; Neil Parikh, Co-founder of Casper, and several others.
“We are thrilled to announce this fundraise and to have the opportunity to learn and build alongside such a successful group of established entrepreneurs, investors and visionaries,” said Andrew Horn, Co-founder and CEO of Tribute. “Tribute was built to help people foster deeper connections and celebrate their important relationships. This round of funding will help us push this goal further by allowing us to develop new offerings and reach additional audiences.”
“Reign Ventures decided to lead the Tribute Series Seed because we saw the incredible ability of this technology to bring people together, even when they may be physically apart, and to capture the priceless emotions that friends, family, and coworkers can share to support each other both in moments of celebration and of challenge,” said Erica Duignan Minnihan, Co-Founder & General Partner at Reign Ventures. “Video is the most important way we communicate with each other today, and the impact of a message sent and cherished as video has an order of magnitude more impact on the recipient than a written digital message or even a handwritten card. We see Tribute as the company that has the team, the passion, and the technology to dominate this extremely valuable market opportunity.”
Tribute is creating Hallmark 2.0 – the modern platform for people to share their appreciation, love and celebratory messages with the people they care about most. Tribute makes it easy to invite friends and family, collect videos, and edit them together into an unforgettable video montage. You can start a Tribute in under 60 seconds! For more hands-on assistance, users can purchase the premium upgrade concierge service which will take care of both the email coordination and final editing. In addition to making great experiential gifts for individual consumers, Tribute has also seen an increase in a broader user base over the past two years, such as employee engagement for remote workers, families of deployed soldiers, students expressing gratitude towards their teachers, and more.
“When I consider investing in a company I begin by asking some very important questions. First, are the Founders people I believe in and respect, and do I share their values? Second, is the company’s product or service good for people and good for the planet? With Tribute, the answers are all a resounding yes,” said Lavinia Errico, Co-founder of Equinox. “Tribute is about love, deep connection and community. It brings joy and meaning to people’s lives every day. These are values that speak to me as an investor and as a human being. Tribute is a powerful, moving and kind way to acknowledge, thank and celebrate the people in our lives who have been there for us. It’s funny that people always say I am the hardest person in the world to buy a gift for. But I would absolutely love to receive a Tribute video, because it speaks to all the things I hold near and dear – community, connection, love and friendship. Can you think of a better investment? (I can’t think of a better investment!)”
Gunnar Lovelace, Founder and Co-CEO of Thrive Market, added, “It was a no-brainer to back Andrew as the Founder of Tribute because he is one of the most natural community builders I have ever met.”
For more information on Tribute or to purchase, visit: tribute.co.
About Tribute
In 2013, Tribute’s Co-founder Andrew Horn received a video montage of his closest friends and family members expressing how he’s impacted their lives, put together by his now wife, Miki. Andrew expressed this was the most meaningful gift he had ever received, and he knew he wanted others to experience the same joy. By 2014, what started as a simple gift grew into a business that has since produced more than 5 million videos in over 90 countries, spreading gratitude, love and meaningful human connection along the way.
