Coffee Meets Bagel is an online dating and social networking service with an estimated net worth of $150 Million as of 2024. Founded by sisters Arum, Dawoon, and Soo Kang in 2012, the app quickly gained popularity in major cities like New York, Boston, and San Francisco. With its unique approach to matchmaking and a strong emphasis on quality over quantity, Coffee Meets Bagel quickly set itself apart from the crowded dating app market.
The company’s early success attracted investors’ attention; in 2012, Coffee Meets Bagel announced that it had raised seed funding of $600,000. This was followed by a $7.8 million Series A financing round in 2015 and a $12 million Series B funding round in 2018.
In January 2015, the sisters appeared on Shark Tank, seeking a $500,000 investment in exchange for 5% of the company. While they did not reach an agreement with any of the sharks, they made a lasting impression and continued to grow the company. Today, Coffee Meets Bagel is a widely recognized and successful dating app known for its unique approach to matchmaking and commitment to creating meaningful connections. This article will dive deeply into Coffee meets Bagel’s net worth, annual revenue, founders, and how this app differs from its competitors.
Table of Contents
Coffee Meets Bagel Valuation & Annual Revenue
| Valuation | $150 Million |
| Annual Revenue | $10 Million |
| Total Funding Amount | $23.2 Million |
| Founders | Arum Kang, Soo Kang, Dawoon Kang |
| Product | Dating App |
Founders
Coffee Meets Bagel, a dating app similar to Tinder, was founded by Arum Kang during her MBA at Harvard Business School. She was one of a few students from the HBS MBA class of 2011 to start their own business. Today, the app is used globally and has thousands of happy users.
Arum runs the app, which targets millennials, alongside her twin sister Dawoon Kang and older sister Soo Kang. In 2015, they even pitched to a panel of high-profile investors on the popular US reality TV show Shark Tank.
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“I didn’t go to HBS thinking I was going to start a business, but being there definitely exposed me more to entrepreneurship,” Arum recalls. “In many ways, my MBA experience allowed me to be an entrepreneur. I don’t think I could have gotten started if I didn’t have that network of people I could tap into, that were so willing to help.”- Arum Kang.
The Kang sisters, originally from South Korea, come from a family of entrepreneurs. Their father ran his own scrap iron business, and their mother managed a series of bars and restaurants. Dawoon, in particular, had always had entrepreneurship on her mind. She chose to attend Stanford for her MBA, and after completing it in 2009, she spent several years at JP Morgan. When Arum graduated from Harvard, she joined forces with her sisters to start her first business.
“We wanted to do something that directly impacts people’s lives,” Dawoon recalls. “Dating came up as a common pain point. There’s a lot of exhaustion and frustration with modern dating—I think it’s become complicated,” she continues. “I’m interested in using Coffee Meets Bagel to change the conversation, to get this generation to share and connect more authentically.”- Dawoon Kang.
On Coffee Meets Bagel, users are paired through an intelligent algorithm, choosing to either ‘like’ or ‘pass’ a profile to find the best potential match. In September 2017, the company analyzed thousands of matches to determine the ‘most liked’ singles at business schools across the United States. There was controversy among the b-school community when women MBAs from Harvard were reported as the most attractive (most liked on the app), while the most picked men came from Stanford GSB.
When Dawoon talks about women in tech, she takes a more serious tone. She’s keen to use her position as a female tech entrepreneur to promote the role of women in an industry still dominated by men. “I remember taking computer science class in college and thinking, I do not belong here,” she says. “I struggled and immediately thought, I’m not good at this. If more women had been represented in the class, I wouldn’t have jumped to the same conclusions so quickly.”
“It makes a huge difference for young people to see a representation of their kind working in a particular industry,” she continues. “If we want equality, we must get everyone equally represented on the table.”
When asked if an MBA is necessary to be an entrepreneur, Dawoon concludes, “No,” but adds that “it’s been precious” for her. “One of the things you leverage is your network. Hiring the right talent; getting good partnerships boils down to people we know through the MBA.”
Coffee Meets Bagel Valuation & Pitch in Shark Tank
In 2015, the Kang sisters, Dawoon, Arum, and Soo, applied to pitch their dating app business, Coffee Meets Bagel, on the popular reality TV show Shark Tank. They were seeking to raise $500,000 for a 5% equity stake in their company, which valued the dating site at $10 million at the time. However, the pitch led to a tense discussion between the sisters and the Sharks, with many viewing the investment as too risky.
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Despite this, Mark Cuban was intrigued and proposed buying the entire CMB brand for $30 million, considered the largest-ever cash offer on Shark Tank. Although the proposal was tempting, the sisters believed that their company, with its potential to compete against industry giant Match.com, was worth more and ultimately turned it down. Today, Coffee Meets Bagel’s valuation is $150 million.
CMB After Shark Tank
Following the successful episode on Shark Tank, the Coffee Meets Bagel founders began their search for other investors. After five funding rounds, the company had raised more than $23.2 million from investors such as Atami Capital and DCM Ventures.
However, the company faced a significant setback in February 2019 when its website was hacked, and the data of over 6.1 million users was leaked. As a result, Coffee Meets Bagel saw a significant dip in user numbers. The company added a virtual video speed dating feature to recover and stay afloat.
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Coffee Meets Bagel is still trying to compete with other popular dating apps such as Hinge, Tinder and Bumble. Despite the efforts, the app remains within the top 15-20 most popular dating sites, with an estimated user base of around 10 million people.
Final Words on Coffee Meets Bagel Net Worth
In conclusion, Coffee Meets Bagel, founded by the three sisters Arum, Soo, and Dawoon Kang, has seen significant growth in its net worth in 2024. The company, featured on Shark Tank in 2015, now claims to have 10 million users on its app and a valuation of $150 million.
This shows that the company has made significant progress in user acquisition and overall value. The company’s success can be attributed to the unique approach of the app, which focuses on quality over quantity, as well as the strong leadership of the founders. With continued growth in the dating app market, Coffee Meets Bagel is well-positioned to continue its success in the future.
FAQs:
What is Coffee Meets Bagel, and how does it differ from other dating apps?
Coffee Meets Bagel is a dating and social networking service founded in San Francisco in 2012. The app quickly gained popularity in major cities like New York, Boston, and San Francisco. With its unique approach to matchmaking and a strong emphasis on quality over quantity, Coffee Meets Bagel quickly set itself apart from the crowded dating app market.
Who founded Coffee Meets Bagel, and when was it launched?
Coffee Meets Bagel was founded by sisters Arum, Dawoon, and Soo Kang in 2012. Arum Kang launched the app during her MBA at Harvard Business School.
How much is Coffee Meets Bagel’s net worth as of 2024?
Coffee Meets Bagel’s net worth is $150 million as of 2024.
What was the outcome of Coffee Meets Bagel’s appearance on Shark Tank in 2015?
In 2015, the Kang sisters appeared on Shark Tank, seeking a $500,000 investment in exchange for 5% of the company. While they did not reach an agreement with any of the sharks, they made a lasting impression and continued to grow the company.
What is the company’s approach to matchmaking, and what is the company’s goal?
Coffee Meets Bagel’s approach to matchmaking is unique. Users are paired through an intelligent algorithm, choosing to either ‘like’ or ‘pass’ a profile to find the best potential match. The company’s goal is to change the conversation, to get this generation to share and connect more authentically.
