GUILD: LEADING AD-FREE MOBILE-FIRST COMMUNITY AND NETWORKING PLATFORM ACHIEVES SIGNIFICANT USER GROWTH AND LAUNCHES STRATEGIC REVIEW

LONDON, March 25, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Guild, the ad-free mobile-first community and networking platform for professionals, has today announced that it has achieved a number of significant growth milestones and has launched a strategic review to ensure that the business continues to develop and grow, both here in the UK and internationally (the "Strategic Review").

London-based Guild was initially launched as a safer business alternative to WhatsApp. It went live in beta in 2019, and then opened to the public in early 2020. Since then, it has evolved to become both a platform for businesses to run GDPR-compliant communities and groups, and an alternative to LinkedIn for individuals.

The Guild platform is now home to over 100,000 professionals who are deeply engaged with 6,000+ expert communities, groups and networks. The business was co-founded by Ashley Friedlein who was also the founder of Centaur-owned Econsultancy.

Gregor Young, CEO of Guild, said "We launched Guild to create a platform and ecosystem for professional communities and networking that is as easy to use as WhatsApp or LinkedIn but without the ads that result in privacy problems, too much noise and a poor user experience. As demonstrated by our rapid organic user growth, there is clearly an appetite for our offering and we now need a partner who can help us accelerate our growth even further. As demonstrated by the recent Reddit IPO filings, the value of community platforms has been boosted by the opportunities that AI have opened up."

The Strategic Review includes Guild reviewing all its options, such as a growth investment and a full sale of the business. Exploratory conversations have already commenced with a number of potential domestic and international firms. The Strategic Review is being handled exclusively by Lazarus Consulting, the boutique M&A advisory firm.

For further press info, interviews and images please contact Ashley Friedlein, ashley@guild.co, (020) 8226 5733.

ABOUT GUILD
Based in London, Guild is a mobile-first community and networking platform purpose-built for those who want the simplicity and ease-of-use of a consumer messaging app, but with the privacy, admin, control, data, branding, analytics, compliance and customer service you would expect for business.

Guild is ad-free and has a freemium SaaS business model. Guild is free for members to join, but if you want to run communities on the platform there are a range of pricing plans based on features and the numbers of groups and members you need.

Guild is a safe space for professionals to connect, communicate, collaborate and build valuable networks and connections. Guild customers include the British Psychological Society, The Marketing Society, CIPD, Royal College of Midwives and many more.

Find out more about Guild's history here https://guild.co/blog/guild-the-founding-story/

ABOUT LAZARUS CONSULTING
Lazarus Consulting is an award-winning boutique advisory firm offering Business Development, Capital Raising, Corporate Development, and M&A services to clients primarily in the tech, media, and retail sectors. The firm is the exclusive corporate finance advisor to Guild. Please see www.lazarusconsulting.net for more information.