Gimme Radio Assets Acquired — and Partially Relaunched — by Music-Focused E-Commerce Company Mainfactor

Eight months after the shutdown of Gimme Radio, a Philadelphia-based company called Mainfactor has purchased its e-commerce assets.

Nearly four-year-old Mainfactor, which bills itself specifically as a music- and entertainment-focused “e-commerce-as-a-service and direct-to-consumer acceleration company,” unveiled the Gimme Radio buyout via a formal release.

As we covered back in April, the genre-centered superfan platform ceased operating despite securing millions from investors – including a $3 million raise in May of 2022. Notwithstanding the shutdown, a number of industry (and industry-adjacent) companies and professionals are still working to more effectively monetize diehard supporters via dedicated digital communities.

Bearing in mind the point, Mainfactor evidently believes that it can integrate and capitalize upon the defunct business’s offerings as they relate to e-commerce.

According to its website, Upper90-backed Mainfactor powers “the full commerce experience, from reach, to sale, to shipment,” with clients (on the e-commerce, merchandise, social media, and/or marketing sides) including the estates of John Lee Hooker, Jim Morrison, and Bing Crosby.

Other partners include Celine Dion, Evanescence, Nickelback, Rhino Records, and Run the Jewels, with Mainfactor having developed a new website for the latter act, per the same source.

In a statement, Mainfactor founder and CEO Mike Fiebach touted the capabilities and vision of Gimme Radio, further underscoring plans to continue the entity’s mission.

“Tyler Lenane and his team at Gimme Radio built one of the most robust communities of music lovers in the world,” communicated Fiebach. “By seamlessly blending content and commerce, they provided die-hard fans with constant exclusive access to media and products.

“Mainfactor is thrilled to continue Gimme’s mission, delivering a platform for engagement, and unique and limited vinyl records and merchandise to some of the world’s most dedicated music consumers,” he concluded.

On this front, Mainfactor has already relaunched the Gimme Metal platform, with plans in place to roll out revamped iterations of the Gimme Country and Gimme Hip-Hop stores “in early 2024.” Longer term, Gimme co-founder and CEO Tyler Lenane in comments of his own expressed the belief that the acquisition could set the stage for an eventual streaming-service relaunch.

“Undoubtedly, Mike Fiebach and his team at Mainfactor are the right fit to continue this mission,” the Mainfactor advisor Lenane relayed in part. “I look forward to collaborating with Mike and his team to rejuvenate the Gimme community, marking a significant step toward the eventual relaunch of an enhanced Gimme streaming service in the future.”