The sale of musical instruments and equipment marketplace Reverb became known from the official press release. The new owners of the site are "a group of investors who also invest in Fender and SoundCloud".
Handmade goods marketplace Etsy, which owns the music flea market Reverb, announced the sale of the platform. The acquisition was made by a group of investors represented by Creator Partners and Servco.
The amount of the deal and its exact terms were not disclosed. In 2019, Etsy paid $275 million for the platform, so now we can talk about comparable amounts.
It should be noted that the platform will become a private company, the shares of which will be divided between Creator Partners, Servco and Reverb employees. The marketplace will gain independence - the platform will independently determine its further development, reporting only to the shareholders.
Creator Partners and Servco, who acted as investors, are active in investing in musical instrument and equipment manufacturers. For example, Creator Partners, founded by former SoundCloud CEO Kerry Trainor, has previously invested in BMI, Fender and the music platform itself, while Servco is the majority owner of Fender.
In a released statement, Reverb representatives confirmed that the marketplace will become a standalone entity as a result of the deal. "We will not be merging with the investors themselves or any other companies in their portfolio, and our team will not change," the marketplace said. End users will not experience any inconveniences and will be able to buy and sell items on Reverb as usual, without any disruption.
In the coming months, the marketplace will be expanding the functionality of the platform. For example, the site will offer more music software for sale and purchase. At the same time, there will be a new option for sellers that will allow for faster payment and delivery of equipment to buyers.
Despite the fact that Creator Partners and Servco are directly affiliated with Fender, the marketplace's management says that the guitar maker "will not receive any preferential treatment" from the platform. The company stated that the deal will not affect the existing partnership with Fender, nor will it affect the Fender Certified Pre-Owned program, which certifies the originality of the American manufacturer's used instruments. Fender will continue to operate a seller page on Reverb on par with more than 20 certified stores for other brands.
