Gigpig, a live entertainment marketplace and gig booking platform, has completed a £1.3m seed investment round, led by Haatch Ventures and Notion Capital.
The business gives artists a free platform to find and play gigs at local venues in the UK whilst providing venues with a streamlined approach to search, book and manage entertainment in-house, booking musicians directly.
Since launching in June 2022, GigPig has launched in more than 22 cities across the country. Over 600 bars, pubs and clubs have signed up, booking more than 31,000 gigs so far.
The latest investment will be used to create more gigging opportunities across the UK, helping more pubs and bars boost their revenues with live music and give artists more ways to earn a living gigging, says the firm.
It is also planning to launch new data-led products and services, as well as an app for artists.
Investors in the seed round include Chris Tottman of Notion Capital and Mark Bennett of Haatch. Angel investors and music industry experts Chris Meehan, Richard Flint, Wolfgang Alistat and Andrea Mihalovits are among a raft of individuals also backing the firm in its next phase of growth.
“We believe our mission to help every pub and bar maximise their potential with live music is more important than ever”
“With the hospitality sector facing unprecedented challenges, we believe our mission to help every pub and bar maximise their potential with live music is more important than ever,” says Michael Forster, chief executive of GigPig.
“Our platform has already helped hundreds of venues improve customer satisfaction, drive footfall and increase sales while giving thousands of artists an easier way to earn money gigging. We’re just getting started and the investment announced today will help bring the benefits of live music to more communities in towns and cities across the UK.”
Chris Tottman, a partner at Notion Capital, adds: “When we met Michael and Kit we were deeply inspired by GigPig’s mission, rooted in their combined 30-plus year industry experience of the grassroots and mainstream live music industries.
“We are invested in their vision to build an entirely new category that gives hospitality venues access to thousands of artists, with the ability to discover and book local talent at their fingertips.”
Mark Bennett, a partner at Haatch, comments: “GigPig is one of the most exciting start-ups in the UK right now, having developed a platform that connects venues and artists at unparalleled scale.
“While gigging in pubs and bars has long been the bedrock of the UK music scene, GigPig’s technology and industry expertise is set to drive explosive growth of live music in the hospitality sector.”
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