Cameo Revenue, Valuation, Funding & Investors
Cameo is valued at $86M as of March 2024.
Last Cameo valuation
$86M
Undisclosed stage · Mar 2024
Last Cameo funding round
$25M
Undisclosed stage · Mar 2024
Cameo revenue
$100M
Series C · Mar 2021
Key investors in Cameo
Lightspeed Venture Partners
Chicago Ventures
Origin Ventures
Next Play Ventures
Starting Line
Jeff Weiner
About Cameo
Cameo is a Chicago-headquartered marketplace connecting fans with celebrities for personalized video messages. Launched in 2017, the platform features thousands of athletes, actors, musicians, and influencers creating custom shoutouts for occasions like birthdays and weddings. Cameo expanded into live calls and group experiences, serving millions of users through its app and website.
Founded
2017
HQ
Chicago, ILWebsite
Status
Privately held
Customer focus
B2C
Revenue model
Commission
Revenue
$100M (Mar 2021)
Valuation
$86M (Mar 2024)
Cameo Valuation
Cameo is currently valued at $86M, based on its undisclosed-stage round in March 2024.
The $25M round was led by Valor Equity Partners.
Cameo's valuation has moved from $300M at its Series B in June 2019 to $86M in March 2024, across 3 priced rounds.
Cameo valuation by funding round
Revenue multiple| Date | Stage | Valuation | Revenue Multiple |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 2024 | Undisclosed stage | $86M | - |
| Mar 2021 | Series C | $1B | 10.0x |
| Jun 2019 | Series B | $300M | - |
Cameo Revenue
Cameo's latest recorded revenue is $100M, as of its Series C in March 2021. At a $1B valuation, that implies a 10.0x revenue multiple.
Cameo revenue by funding round
| Date | Revenue * | Valuation | Revenue Multiple | Stage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 2021 | $100M | $1B | 10.0x | Series C |
* Revenue (or ARR) figures are the values recorded alongside each funding round. Typically run-rate revenue at the time of the deal, or a reported LTM (last 12 months) revenue.
Cameo Funding History
Cameo has raised a total of $191M across 5 funding rounds.
Cameo's first fundraising round was a $3M seed round in February 2018. The most recent completed round was a $25M undisclosed-stage round in March 2024.
Cameo funding rounds
| Date | Stage | Investors | Raised | Valuation | Deal Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 2024 | Undisclosed stage | Valor Equity Partners (lead) | $25M | $86M | Cameo is a Chicago-based platform enabling fans to purchase personalized video messages from celebrities and influencers, operating a commission-based marketplace where it takes a 25-30% cut of transactions, with creators retaining 70-75% of booking fees plus tips. The company has expanded into B2B products and faced challenges including layoffs to achieve near-breakeven operations with a lean team under 50 employees. It previously raised significant funding, including a $100 million Series C in March 2021 valuing it at $1 billion and a $50 million Series B in 2019, bringing total funding to around $194 million across rounds. On March 22, 2024, Cameo raised approximately $25-28 million in a Series C extension round led by Valor Equity Partners, matching the specified investor and date. This down round reflected a sharp valuation decline from its prior unicorn status, with reports indicating a valuation under $100 million and a specific post-money figure of $86.16 million based on share price data. Earlier sources noted total funding surpassing $200 million by 2025 with additional small rounds. The company has navigated post-pandemic difficulties, with founder references to highs and lows amid a tough 2023. Competitive context in the creator economy includes network effects from celebrity participation driving consumer bookings. Secondary market data and IPO watchlists show ongoing interest, with total funding estimates varying slightly to $203.69 million by early 2025, including a minor $2.92 million round in January 2025. |
| Mar 2021 | Series C | Headline (lead) | $100M | $1B | Cameo is a platform enabling fans to purchase personalized video messages from celebrities and influencers, operating a commission-based marketplace where the platform takes a 25-30% cut of transactions, with creators retaining 70-75% of booking fees plus tips. In March 2021, Cameo raised $100 million in a Series C funding round led by e.ventures, with participation from Headline, GV, Amazon's Alexa Fund, SoftBank, UTA venture arm, and existing investors including Lightspeed, Kleiner Perkins, Spark Capital, The Chernin Group, and Origin Ventures, bringing total funding to $165 million at that time. The round valued the company at over $1 billion post-money, up from $300 million in 2019, achieving unicorn status. For 2020, Cameo reported $100 million in sales or gross revenue, booking 1.3 million video messages—more than in its entire prior history—with most revenue going to celebrities, and the company remaining unprofitable. Approximately 20% of videos were purchased outside the U.S. at the time, and over 150 creators earned more than $100,000 each. The funding was intended to expand Cameo for Business (C4B) for corporate events, ads, and sales, as well as international growth and new product concepts like voice technology integrations. Cameo, founded in 2016 and headquartered in Chicago, saw explosive growth during the pandemic, catalyzing direct-to-fan models in entertainment. It later raised additional funds, including $28 million in March 2024 led by Valor Equity Partners, reaching approximately $194 million total funding, while operating with a lean team of under 50 employees post-layoffs to approach breakeven. |
| Jun 2019 | Series B | Kleiner Perkins (lead); Spark Capital; TCG; Lightspeed Venture Partners; Bain Capital | $50M | $300M | Cameo is a Chicago-based startup that connects fans with celebrities, athletes, influencers, and VIPs for personalized video shoutouts, taking a 25% marketplace fee on transactions priced from $5 to $2,500. On June 25, 2019, it closed a $50 million Series B round led by Kleiner Perkins, with participation from Lightspeed Venture Partners (Series A lead), Bain Capital, Spark Capital (Spark Ventures), and The Chernin Group (TCG). This followed a $12.5 million Series A in November 2018, bringing total funding to over $62.5 million at the time. The round valued Cameo at a post-money $300 million, as reported in multiple sources including Delaware stock filings, with funds allocated to platform enhancements, international expansion into Europe, Asia, and South America, growth in UK and Australia operations, and tripling headcount at its new 20-person Los Angeles office alongside 66 employees in Chicago headquarters. By then, Cameo had facilitated 275,000 personalized videos from 15,000 talents since launch 26 months prior, up significantly from 85,000 videos by 5,000 talents six months earlier, with 30% of revenues from abroad and roughly half the talents being social media influencers charging $50-$100 per video. Investor interest stemmed from Cameo's hypergrowth, strong talent retention, and recognition like Time's '50 Most Genius Companies of 2018,' amid a competitive process anchored by Kleiner Perkins. |
| Nov 2018 | Series A | Lightspeed Venture Partners (lead); Pritzker Group Venture Capital; Next Play Ventures; Chicago Ventures; Digi Ventures; Origin Ventures; Bedrock; Starting Line; Jeff Weiner | $13M | - | Cameo, a Chicago-based company founded in 2017, raised $12.5 million in a Series A funding round on November 21, 2018, led by Lightspeed Venture Partners with participation from Pritzker Group Venture Capital, Bedrock, Chicago Ventures, Starting Line, Origin Ventures, and Jeff Weiner. The platform operates as a marketplace for personalized video shout-outs from celebrities, athletes, and influencers, with fees set by the talent. This followed a $3.21 million seed round in February 2018 from Origin Ventures, Chicago Ventures, and others. |
| Feb 2018 | Seed | Starting Line (lead); Jackson Jhin; Atacama Ventures; Ezra Galston; Next Play Ventures; Chicago Ventures; Origin Ventures; Michael Gamson; Jeff Weiner; Counterpart Advisors | $3M | - | Cameo raised $3.2 million in seed funding on February 23, 2018, from investors including Origin Ventures, Chicago Ventures, Atacama Ventures, Starting Line, and angels such as Jeff Weiner. Starting Line participated as an early investor in this round. The Chicago-based startup, founded in 2017 by Steven Galanis, Devon Spinnler Townsend, and Martin Blencowe, operates an online marketplace for personalized video shout-outs from celebrities, athletes, and influencers, with fees set by the talent and Cameo taking a 25% cut. |
Who has invested in Cameo?
20 investors have backed Cameo across its funding rounds, including Lightspeed Venture Partners, Chicago Ventures, Origin Ventures, Next Play Ventures, Starting Line and Jeff Weiner.
Lead investors include Valor Equity Partners, Headline, Kleiner Perkins, Lightspeed Venture Partners and Starting Line.
Cameo Investors
| Investor | HQ | Rounds | Role | First check |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| San Francisco, CA | 2 | Participant | Feb 2018 | |
| Chicago, IL | 2 | Participant | Feb 2018 | |
| Chicago, IL | 2 | Participant | Feb 2018 | |
| San Francisco, CA | 2 | Lead | Nov 2018 | |
| Chicago, IL | 2 | Lead | Feb 2018 | |
| San Francisco, CA | 2 | Participant | Feb 2018 | |
![](data:image/svg+xml,<svg xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" width="20" height="20" viewBox="0 0 20 20"><rect fill="%23e5e7eb" width="20" height="20" rx="4"/></svg>){kind=small} Jackson Jhin | Chicago, IL | 1 | Participant | Feb 2018 |
| San Francisco, CA | 1 | Participant | Feb 2018 | |
| San Francisco, CA | 1 | Lead | Jun 2019 | |
| Chicago, IL | 1 | Participant | Nov 2018 | |
| San Francisco, CA | 1 | Participant | Jun 2019 | |
| Ezra Galston | Chicago, IL | 1 | Participant | Feb 2018 |
| Los Angeles, CA | 1 | Participant | Jun 2019 | |
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Start Free TrialAcquisitions by Cameo
Cameo has acquired 1 company to date.
Last acquisition by Cameo was on October 25th 2021. Cameo acquired Represent for undisclosed valuation.
Latest Acquisitions by Cameo
| Description | Represent is a London-based custom merchandise platform for fundraising campaigns. Users design T-shirts, hoodies, and accessories via drag-and-drop tools, launching free stores shared with communities. Upon reaching sales targets, Represent handles printing, fulfillment, and profit payouts to creators or charities worldwide. |
| HQ Country | |
| HQ City | Los Angeles, CA |
| Deal Date | 25 Oct 2021 |
| Valuation | undisclosed |
| EV/Revenue | |
| EV/EBITDA | |
This data is available for Pro users. Sign up to see all Cameo acquisitions and their M&A valuation multiples. Start Free Trial | |
Cameo Competitors
Cameo competitors include listed companies like hipages Group and BuildDirect, and private ones like Beatclub, GigaStar, Peckwater Brands and Snappy Shopper.
| Company | HQ | Status | Revenue | EBITDA | Valuation | Revenue Multiple |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles, CA | Private | - | - | $109M | - | |
| Chicago, IL | Private | - | - | $58M | - | |
 London | Private | - | - | $86M | - | |
| Dundee | Private | - | - | $86M | - | |
 Australia | Publicly listed | $59M | $15M | $86M | 1.0x | |
 Canada | Publicly listed | $66M | $3M | $87M | - |
Cameo Public Comps
Cameo is still privately-owned, but its public comps include hipages Group, BuildDirect, Webjet, OpenDoor Inc., SelectQuote, Freetrailer Group, Articore Group, Adventure Inc., Jiayin Group and Swvl.
| Last FY | EV/Revenue | EV/EBITDA | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | EBITDA | Last FY | LTM | 2027E | Last FY | LTM | 2027E | |
| $59M | $15M | 1.1x | 1.0x | 4.6x | 4.0x | |||
| $66M | $3M | 1.7x | - | 41.8x | - | |||
| $97M | $11M | 0.1x | 0.1x | 0.9x | 0.5x | |||
| $16M | ($7M) | 4.7x | 4.6x | (11.2x) | - | |||
| $1.6B | $138M | 0.5x | 0.5x | 5.5x | 7.1x | |||
| $20M | $8M | 4.6x | - | 11.9x | - | |||
| $291M | $11M | 0.2x | 0.2x | 5.2x | 4.6x | |||
| $163M | ($4M) | 0.3x | 0.3x | (12.8x) | - | |||
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Common questions about Cameo
| When was Cameo founded? | Cameo was founded in 2017. |
| Where is Cameo headquartered? | Cameo is headquartered in Chicago, IL, United States. |
| Is Cameo publicly listed? | No, Cameo is a private, VC-backed company. |
| What is Cameo's valuation? | Cameo was last valued at $86M in its undisclosed-stage round in March 2024. |
| How much funding has Cameo raised? | Cameo has raised $191M across 5 funding rounds. |
| What was Cameo's last funding round? | Cameo's last funding round was a $25M undisclosed-stage round in March 2024, led by Valor Equity Partners. |
| Who are Cameo's investors? | Cameo's investors include Next Play Ventures, Chicago Ventures, Origin Ventures, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Starting Line, Jeff Weiner, Jackson Jhin, Atacama Ventures, Kleiner Perkins, Pritzker Group Venture Capital and 10 others. |
| What is Cameo's revenue? | Cameo's latest recorded revenue is $100M (March 2021). |
| What is Cameo's revenue multiple? | Cameo's latest valuation implies a 10.0x revenue multiple ($1B valuation on $100M of revenue). |
| Which companies are comparable to Cameo? | Companies comparable to Cameo include Beatclub, GigaStar, Peckwater Brands, Snappy Shopper, hipages Group and BuildDirect. |
| How many companies has Cameo acquired? | Cameo has acquired 1 company, including Represent. |
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