Vinyl Group to Buy Funkified Entertainment

Vinyl Group continues to expand, this time through the multi-million-dollar purchase of Funkified Entertainment.

Announced today, September 26th, Vinyl Group has executed a binding heads of agreement to acquire Funkified, the end-to-end events and brand activations business.

Founded in 2009, Funkified has served as the in-house events arm of The Brag Media, a division of Vinyl Group, since 2021.

“The acquisition of Funkified completes our acquisition strategy aimed at fully realising the opportunities identified in The Brag Media business, while improving group company margins, revenue and driving growth,” comments Vinyl Group CEO Josh Simons.

Additionally, he adds, “it accelerates our path to profitability. We look forward to welcoming the Funkified team and working closely together on opportunities to grow.”

Josh Simons

The brand activation agency and white-label specialist serves some of the largest advertising and creative houses, and boasts full-year 2024 revenue of $4.03 million and $430,000 EBITDA.

Vinyl Group will acquire 100% of the issued capital in Funkified Entertainment Pty Ltd in exchange for $2.5 million, including $1.8 million in cash (paid in two equal tranches of $650,000) and $200,000 in shares (valued at the 15-day Volume Weighted Average Price of Vinyl Group shares on the ASX for the period immediately preceding the completion date).

Included in the arrangement is $500,000 in deferred performance shares, a sum that will be deposited into an escrow account as security for 12 months from completion.

On completion, Funkified founder and CEO Gus Stephenson will enter into a full-time employment agreement with Vinyl Group, and will continue to lead its activities, which will be integrated under The Brag Media.

“Following several years of working closely with the incredible team at The Brag Media and Vinyl Group,” comments Stephenson,” creating some of the country’s largest and most innovative events and activations, it is an exciting step in our 15-year history to officially join Vinyl Group. We look forward to bringing our expertise and accelerating the growth and profitability of events and activations across the wider organisation.”

Vinyl Group expects to “realise immediate margin improvement” as a result of this acquisition, reads a statement to the ASX. Group operational efficiencies will include Funkified managing the events schedule for Mediaweek, which Vinyl Group acquired earlier this year.

Completion of the Funkified deal is expected no later than Dec. 31, 2024, and is dependent on certain deliverables including ASX and ASIC approval.

Vinyl Group (ASX: VNL) is Australia’s only ASX-listed music company, with a growing empire that includes its music credits business Jaxsta; Vampr, the leading music industry social-professional network and talent marketplace; Vinyl.com, the online record store; and The Brag Media.

Based in Sydney, Vinyl Group made global headlines with its purchase of The Brag Media, announced in December 2023 and completed in late January 2024, a pact that welcomed The Brag’s suite of titles into the Vinyl fold, including Rolling Stone AU/NZ, Variety AU, Tone Deaf and The Music Network.