Definitive Agreement
Vox Media
Group Nine Acquisition Corp.
- Registration2020-12-21 Filed S1
- IPO2021-01-16 IPO, search begins
- Definitive Agreement2021-12-13 Agreement for merger
- CompletedNot yet completed
- Raised
- $200M
- CIK
- 1832250
- SPAC Ticker
- GNACU
- Merger
- Vox Media
- Focus
- Media, Ecommerce, Marketing
SPAC Team
Leadership
Ben Lerer is our Chief Executive Officer and Chairman . Mr. Lerer currently serves as Chief Executive Officer of Group Nine Media, the parent of our sponsor and a digital media holding company consisting of Thrillist, POPSUGAR, The Dodo, NowThis, and Seeker and has served in such position since December 2016. Prior to Group Nine Media, Mr. Lerer served as Chief Executive Officer of Thrillist since 2005. Mr. Lerer has over 15 years of technology industry experience, specifically within the digital media sector. As CEO of Group Nine Media, Mr. Lerer has led the acquisitions of JASH, a digital comedy studio, in November 2017 and POPSUGAR, a prominent digital women’s lifestyle brand, in November 2019. Mr. Lerer is also an experienced technology investor and board member, serving as Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Lerer Hippeau, an early-stage New York venture capital firm investing in consumer, e-commerce, digital media, emerging tech, and enterprise software sectors. Through his tenure at Lerer Hippeau, Mr. Lerer has invested in key companies such as Allbirds, Glossier, Mirror, and Warby Parker. He currently sits on the Boards of Directors of Casper Sleep, RaisedByUs, Urban Upbound, and Fetch, Inc. We believe Mr. Lerer is well qualified to serve on our Board of Directors due to his knowledge of the digital media sector and extensive leadership experience in operating and advising digital media companies.
Brian Sugar is our President and one of our directors . Mr. Sugar currently serves as President of Group Nine Media, responsible for strategic initiatives and innovation, and has served in such position since 2019. He also serves as Founder and Managing Partner at Sugar Capital, an early stage venture capital firm that seeks to invest in the brands and technology that will power the future of e-commerce, since January 2020. Mr. Sugar joined Group Nine Media with the company’s acquisition of POPSUGAR, a prominent digital lifestyle brand for women. Mr. Sugar served as Chief Executive Officer of POPSUGAR from 2006 to 2019. Mr. Sugar is an early investor in Afterpay, Everlane, Optimizely, and Roadster, among others. He sits on the Boards of Directors of Everlane, Fast, Roadster, and The Assembly and is an Advisor to Afterpay, Olive & June, Tribe Dynamics, and True Botanicals. Prior to POPSUGAR, Mr. Sugar served first as Vice President of Marketing and then as Vice President & General Manager of 2Wire’s media business unit from 2003 to 2006. Before joining 2Wire, he was Founder and CEO of Sugar Media, a digital media software company, which was acquired by 2Wire in 2003. We believe Mr. Sugar is well qualified to serve on our Board of Directors due to his experience in developing, operating and advising e-commerce and digital media companies.
Sean Macnew is our Chief Financial Officer . Mr. Macnew currently serves as Chief Financial Officer of Group Nine Media. Mr. Macnew has over 25 years of finance, corporate development, and general management experience. Mr. Macnew joined Group Nine Media with its acquisition of POPSUGAR, where he held the positions of Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer. Prior to joining POPSUGAR in 2008, Mr. Macnew was Senior Director and General Manager of the NetBackup RealTime Protection product group, after holding roles in M&A and business development at Symantec Corporation and VERITAS Software. Mr. Macnew began his career as an investment banker for Goldman Sachs and Alex. Brown & Sons.
Richard (“Dick”) Parsons is one of our Directors . Mr. Parsons currently serves as Co-Founder and Partner of Imagination Capital, a New York based venture capital firm launched in 2017. Prior to founding Imagination Capital, Mr. Parsons served as Chairman of Citigroup from 2009 to 2012, playing a key role in rebuilding the financial institution. Mr. Parsons also notably served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Time Warner from 2002 to 2008, joining the company as President in 1995. During his time as Chief Executive Officer of Time Warner, Mr. Parsons helped lead Time Warner’s turnaround, setting the company on a solid path toward achieving sustainable growth. Before joining Time Warner, Mr. Parsons was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Dime Bancorp, one of the largest thrift institutions in the United States. Previously, Mr. Parsons was the Managing Partner of Patterson, Belknap, Webb and Tyler, a New York law firm, and also held various positions in state and federal government as counsel for Nelson Rockefeller and as a Senior White House Aide under President Gerald Ford. Mr. Parsons also has extensive public company board experience; he is currently a member of the Boards of Directors of Estée Lauder, Madison Square Garden Sports, and Lazard and has served as Chairman of the Board of Directors of both Time Warner and Citigroup. We believe Mr. Parsons is well qualified to serve on our Board of Directors due to his vast experience in corporate finance and telecommunications.