Manchester-based gaming and tech media publisher, By Gamers For Gamers (BGFG) is set to have another significant year of growth after strong performance in 2022.
BGFG was founded in 2019 to provide real, honest reviews for the tech and gaming sector. As the market responded and viewership grew, the business needed additional capital to grow the team, develop functionality, and to acquire other sites to grow the company’s reach. As part of a £1m raise, GC Angels invested £150,000 in BGFG in 2021. GC Angels are the leading seed investor in Greater Manchester and were joined by other investors who believed in the vision of the company.
Over the last year, the business has seen continued growth, and has attracted top talent such as Talal Musa, Head of Digital in July 2022 who came from Gfinity Esports PLC. The business then acquired Videogamer.com, a gaming review and news site. The site attracted around 100,000 users a month when acquired, and has grown significantly since then, boasting over 3.5m monthly users. In February 2023 the business completed another acquisition, N4G.com, a gaming news aggregator site.
In 2022, two new subsidiary businesses were incorporated: Agency GMR, a brand services agency helping tech and gaming brands with marketing campaigns, and Gaming Giveaways, an e-commerce raffle business.
This year, the business is looking to expand its digital content offering, with plans to acquire more businesses to bolster its existing portfolio. As the gaming industry is set to grow to £268bn by 2025, up from £155bn in 2020, the business also plans to continue to diversify its model into other areas of gaming and tech.
Andrew Kirkcaldy, co-founder and CEO of BGFG, said: “It has been quite a journey since we started back in 2019 with just 4 people. With over 30 full time employees and a talented international freelancer team, I am very excited for the years ahead. With our recent acquisitions of Videogamer.com and N4G.com we have created a great foothold in the gaming and tech media space.
“Whilst COVID undoubtedly impacted the global tech supply chains (and continues to do so) this has meant that we have had to diversify our revenue streams in order to build resilience to wider economic challenges. It has been great to see the business continue to accelerate, which is testament to the amazing team that we have at BGFG.
“Having worked with the team at GC Angels in the early stages of BGFG’s growth, providing the vital funding we needed early on, it’s great to know that they’re helping to develop the North’s tech and publishing sector of which is important not just to our business, but the wider region as well.”
Sam Patchitt, Investment and Portfolio Manager at GC Angels added: “BGFG’s performance has been exceptional over the past few years. The team is passionate about delivering insightful content, and the growing user base confirms their value in the market. We look forward to continue supporting their growth as the business scales beyond 2023.”
