Viral Nation figured out influencer marketing before most brands understood what influencer marketing even was. Joe Gagliese and Mathew Micheli launched it in 2014 in Toronto — before the category had a name — and built it into a full-service agency managing both brand campaigns and creator talent. Clients like Activision, Costco, and Apple Music write serious checks here. The company passed $100 million in annual revenue and took private equity investment from Maverix Private Equity in 2021. It is one of the few influencer-first agencies that actually scaled.
Founded
2014
HQ
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Total Raised
Private equity backed
Founder
Joe Gagliese, Mathew Micheli
Status
Private
Website
www.viralnation.comTHE ORIGIN STORY
Joe Gagliese was in his early 20s when he noticed that social media stars were moving product more effectively than television ads, but brands had no idea how to work with them. He co-founded Viral Nation with Mathew Micheli in Toronto in 2014 as an influencer marketing agency.
They started by brokering deals between Instagram and YouTube creators and mid-size brands, then expanded into talent management, brand strategy, and eventually technology products.
WHAT THEY ACTUALLY DO
Viral Nation operates across three verticals. The agency division runs influencer marketing campaigns for brands, handling creator sourcing, contract negotiation, content review, and performance tracking.
The talent management division represents individual creators, negotiating brand deals and platform partnerships on their behalf. Viral Nation Secure is a brand safety and compliance platform sold to enterprise clients as a SaaS product.
THE PRODUCTS
Influencer marketing campaign management. Creator talent management and representation.
Viral Nation Secure — an AI-powered brand safety, compliance, and social monitoring platform.
HOW THEY GREW
Build deep relationships with both sides of the creator economy — brands and creators — to become the trusted intermediary. Expand from campaign execution into software with Viral Nation Secure.
Take private equity capital to grow headcount and enter new markets outside North America.
THE HARD PART
Influencer marketing agencies are a relationship business with low barriers to entry. Talent can walk, brands can go direct, and platforms keep building their own creator-brand matching tools.
Margins are under constant pressure as the industry commoditizes.
MONEY TRAIL
Private Equity
2021 · Led by Maverix Private Equity
$50M raised
WHO BACKED THEM
Maverix Private Equity
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Both Viral Nation and Jellysmack built businesses at the intersection of creators and brands, but approached the market differently. Viral Nation runs campaigns for brands; Jellysmack distributes and monetizes creator content across platforms.
TikTok
TikTok is one of Viral Nation's core platforms for creator campaigns. As TikTok's ad ecosystem grew, it became a major revenue channel for Viral Nation's brand partnership business.
Head-to-Head
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