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Lucia Moses
- Jukin Media leaders are launching travel media company Lost iN with $4 million in seed funding.
- Lost iN says there's a market of professionals underserved by current travel media offerings.
- Lost iN plans to grow through M&A, travel creator partnerships, and multiple revenue streams.
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Three leaders of digital publisher Jukin Media, known for making videos like Pizza Rat go viral, have teamed up again, this time on a creator-driven travel media company called Lost iN.
The trio just raised $4 million in seed funding led by MaC Venture Capital. Other advisors and investors include BDMI, Pitbull Ventures, Pocket.Watch founder Chris Williams, Fullscreen founder George Strompolos, Hawke Media founder Erik Huberman, Skybound founder David Alpert, Kevin Gould of Kombo Ventures, Richard Wolbert, and Matthew Rutler.
Brothers Jonathan and Mike Skogmo, and Anton Reut, built Jukin Media before it was sold in 2021 to Trusted Media Brands, parent of Reader's Digest.
Jonathan Skogmo, who will serve as CEO of Lost iN, said after selling Jukin and advising others, he realized he wanted to build a new company. He thought travel media had become fragmented, with traditional, ad-driven publishers like Condé Nast Traveler aimed at the high-end and niche publications focused on areas like camping, leaving a big market underserved.
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"There's a middle market of working professionals who are being ignored," he said. "There's more opportunity here."
Skogmo acknowledged that his idea to start a media company raised some eyebrows. He flew to Croatia to pitch his brother on the idea, joking, "I had to meet him halfway around the world to convince my brother who lives down the street from me." Mike Skogmo, who was on a multi-country trip, knew firsthand how hard it is to find information when planning travel.
Lost iN acquired a city guidebook publisher by the same name and plans to build other products and services around it by partnering with creators and doing M&A. It's working with Rob Levy of Digital Media Capital Advisors to acquire other travel-related companies in areas like consumer products and media. In this way, Skogmo said he hopes to grow Lost iN to a $500 million enterprise value in five years.
It's been a punishing time for media companies, with tough competition for ad revenue, subscriptions hard to come by, and digital platforms shrinking as a distribution channel. Skogmo said he was inspired by media companies like Epic Gardening and Betches that have built fandoms and make money in various ways.
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Check out Lost iN's 14-page pitch deck for more details on how it plans to scale.
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Lost iN wants to use creators to reach travel buffs.
The founders want to take a page from Jukin Media, which they built on user-generated content.
Lost iN says travel media is challenged.
As the founders see it, legacy publishers are struggling, travel blogs lack the video that audiences crave, and independent creators don't have the broad reach that advertisers require.
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Lost iN wants to capitalize on growth in travel.
It wants to reach young adults who are prioritizing travel more than older generations.
Lost iN wants to be a single source for travelers.
Its founders have a track record reaching huge audiences at Jukin.
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The founders lay out their video-focused media plan.
They plan to produce everything from short-form video for social platforms to unscripted series for big streaming platforms.
Creators are a cornerstone of the strategy.
It plans to start with a handful of creators, which it hasn't named, making original content with some of them. The idea is to experiment with different revenue-sharing models.
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It's aiming for people with money to spend.
The target audience is young professionals who are willing to pay more for extra comfort or exclusivity — the so-called premium economy customer.
Lost iN wants to make money in lots of ways.
Like many media companies today, Lost iN is aiming for diversified revenue streams. It plans to make money through advertising, branded content, books and other products and experiences, and sales of video content to distributors.
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Rollups are a big part of the growth plan.
Lost iN acquired a city guidebook publisher of the same name and plans to build up other travel-related products and services around it.
Lost iN lays out its M&A strategy.
Skogmo said Lost iN has already looked at 100 potential acquisitions, working with Rob Levy of Digital Media Capital Advisors.
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Lost iN lays out the case for acquiring a guidebook company.
It liked Lost iN for its strong logo and visuals, small but loyal customer base, and established network of contributors.
It plans to build up a following for the guidebooks on social media and pause publishing the physical books until it has a stronger digital presence.
Advant Beiten in Munich and Sklar Kirsh in Los Angeles advised the buyers in the transaction, while Flick Gocke Schaumberg represented the seller. Digital Media Capital Advisors served as advisor.
Lost iN's founders helped build Jukin Media.
The viral video company made money by acquiring and distributing or licensing user-generated content.
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Lost iN raised $4 million in seed funding.
MaC Venture Capital, which led the round, is known for backing tech startups including Pipe, a financing company; Stoke, a reusable rocket company; and Zigazoo, a social network for kids. The majority Black-owned firm is based in LA and Silicon Valley.
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