Etsy have announced the signing of a definitive agreement to acquire Reverb, a privately held marketplace for new, used, and vintage music gear. The deal is for $275 million in cash and should close in the coming months.
Etsy is uniquely focused on serving passionate, creative communities of sellers and buyers and believes there are many untapped opportunities for Reverb to bring their business to the next level and better support their community. Reverb will continue to operate as a standalone marketplace after the deal closes and Etsy will provide support, guidance, and resources to capitalize on areas like:
- Improving search and discovery
- Making selling and buying easier
- Building a global brand and user community
Etsy say that they have tremendous success in growing its own marketplace (including roughly doubling GMS growth, revenue growth, and profit margins) since Josh Silverman took over as CEO in 2017. So Etsy is well positioned to pull from its own playbook in order to lead Reverb in its next chapter.
Reverb was founded in 2013 on the principle that buying musical instruments should be easy and affordable. Based in Chicago with approximately 170 employees they connect one million active buyers with 380,000 active sellers around the world.
Reverb’s seller base spans many countries, with key markets including some of the same ones as Etsy, such as the US, Canada, UK, France, Germany and Australia. Sellers are generally individuals, brick and mortar retailers, dealers of all sizes, and high-profile artists.
“As a founder, there’s nothing more rewarding than helping create a team and a business that you know will not only stand, but flourish when you take a step back. That’s why after the acquisition closes, I’ll eventually hand over the CEO role to a new leader. I’ll remain closely involved during the transition and after that, I’ll remain Reverb’s biggest fan (And continue to drool over every ‘60s Strat that goes up for sale.) I’m looking forward to watching this community continue to grow, while also spending more time with family.
Whether your small business relies on Reverb for crucial online income, your band turns to Reverb to keep its sound fresh, or you just like watching our YouTube videos—thank you. Without you, Reverb is just a website. Because of you, Reverb is the best community online for musicians and music lovers from all over the world to connect over the perfect piece of gear. And together with Etsy, we’ll continue to make the world more musical together.”
– David Kalt, CEO / Founder, Reverb
