Dear Media, a podcast network that features shows created by and for women, announced Thursday it raised $8 million in funding from Magnet Companies. The LA-based company plans to use this money to attract more talent, fund original content and invest in other direct-to-consumer companies.
Founded in 2018, Dear Media currently hosts more than 40 podcasts about everything from career development and advocacy, to parenting and relationships. These shows are fronted by notable women like author Katherine Schwarzenegger (“The Dog That Changed Me”), chef Gaby Dalkin (“What’s Gaby Cooking in Quarantine”) and nutrition experts Wendy Lopez and Jessica Jones (“Food Heaven Made Easy”). The goal of this network is to feature and empower women.
“This medium has been in need of an update for a long time. Not only in the voices that are represented, but in the way those voices are able to engage in this space,” co-founder and CEO Michael Bosstick said in a statement provided to Built In. “We view our talent and shows as not only podcast channels but brands within themselves. This investment will help us meet the strong demand we’ve seen from audiences for our programming to develop new business models that we believe are the future of audio and commerce. Dear Media was built to do just that. To break barriers and change the current landscape.”
Dear Media claims to have built a social following of more than 25 million and exceeded 150 million episode downloads. The company also has advertising partnerships with companies like LinkedIn, Microsoft and Ulta Beauty and plans to use this most recent funding to expand that roster.
