From left to right, Bevy cofounder and CEO Derek Andersen, Eventtus cofounder and CPO Nihal Fares, and Eventtus cofounder and CEO Mai Medhat
Bevy, a technology startup that bills itself as an "enterprise-community event platform," is acquiring Eventtus, an Egypt-based event management software company that has been around since 2012. The deal beefs up Bevy's functionality for use at in-person events, with features like a mobile event app and other attendee engagement tools.
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The acquisition is another instance of the rising trend of popular digital event platforms gobbling up existing event tech companies with cash investments from pandemic-era growth. The purchases help them transition toward in-person and hybrid meeting formats. Bevy raised $40 million in Series C funding this spring, upping its valuation to $325 million.
“Enterprises have invested in creating connected communities for their customers, employees and partners," said Bevy CEO and co-founder Derek Andersen, referring to the platform's explosive growth in 2020. "Events are not only an extension of these communities but also provide an important channel for driving ongoing engagement.”
Bevy's heightened focus on community-building distinguishes them in the event-tech marketplace, claimed Eventtus cofounder Mai Medhat, making them an attractive suitor and natural partner. "They’ve built a powerful community event engine that helps enterprise teams create a sense of community among their customers, prospects, partners and employees,” she said. “This is what all other event platforms are missing. And it’s the key to unlocking global scale and growth.”
Bevy itself grew out of the Startup Grind community, a global network of nascent companies and entrepreneurs, of which Andersen is also CEO and cofounder. Andersen couldn't find the technology platform he wanted for Startup Grind, so he and his team developed the technology that was eventually spun off as Bevy.
Bevy doubled down on its community-building mission and a commitment to diversity in March, when the company announced that 20 percent of its Series C investment came from Black investors — a significant portion, given how few Black venture capitalists are typically involved in similar tech startups. Seventy percent of the 40 new investors in the most recent round are Black and 30 percent are women. Bevy also set ambitious workforce diversity goals, committing to having Black employees represent 20 percent of the total employee base by this coming September — up from 0 percent in February 2020.
The Eventtus acquisition will bolster Bevy's community-building efforts with a number of mobile app capabilities for hybrid events, including networking, virtual booths, interactive tools for livestreaming, real-time analytics, and an integrated ticketing and registration system.