KAI Media, a company that focuses on physical K-pop music and brick-and-mortar fan events, has raised $3 million from existing investment firm CRIT Ventures to fund expansion beyond its Los Angeles base. The company, which operates under the brand name hello82, previously raised $5 million from CRIT Ventures, Kakao Entertainment, Snow Corp. and other investors.
Founded in 2018, hello82 is a record label and distributor that sells music in physical formats through its online store, pop-up stores and brick-and-mortar locations. The company acquires physical rights while other labels retain the rights for digital releases. It operates an e-commerce store, sells products on its own site, and has relationships with national chains such as Target, Walmart, and Barnes & Noble. After launching its first Fan Space in Los Angeles, hello82 will open a second Fan Space in Atlanta this Saturday (April 6) and plans to launch a third in Berlin. Fan Space is a retail store as well as a gathering place for K-pop fans that hosts meet and greets with artists, photo trading card events, album release events and pop-up merchandise.
Focusing on real-world events and physical products is a throwback marketing approach in the age of music streaming and social media. But hello82's approach paid off. ATEEZ's latest album, THE WORLD EP.FIN: WILL, reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart in December 2023 with physical sales of 146,000 units — 96% of total album units — thanks to more than 30 collector's editions being released. P1Harmony Harmony: All In, 6th Mini album was available on 21 CD collector's editions and debuted at No.8 Advertising signJuly 2023 Top album Sales Chart.
“We were born as a 'fan first' company because we are fans ourselves” Jae Yoon Choi, CEO and founder of hello82, said in a statement. “While the music industry usually focuses solely on artists and music, we have successfully created a two-way bridge between both K-pop and fans outside of South Korea. We are ready to take our formula to new international markets, including Europe, to continue to showcase South Korean artists and connect them with fans.”
from our partners at https://www.billboard.com/business/record-labels/kai-media-k-pop-label-hello82-funding-expansion-1235648211/