Yesterday, blockbuster app developer Lightricks announced a new type of collaboration with the “first family of TikTok,” the D’Amelios.

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A far cry from traditional influencer marketing models, whereby brands pay content creators to promote their products with one-off sponsored posts on social media, in this case, the D’Amelios have secured an equity stake in the $1.8 billion company, which recently raised a Series D round of $130 million in September 2021. It’s an unusual move for the social media tech space, but the practice is well-established in the music and movie industries, so there is exciting potential.

This collaboration in particular makes sense because of the strength of both brands and how their audiences tie together. Lightricks is the company behind many of the most popular apps for creators, such as Facetune, Filtertune and Videoleap. As they’ve grown, they’ve added more apps to their ecosystem and now can legitimately claim to be the most complete set of tools for creators who wish to monetize their efforts. 

The D’Amelio family are perhaps the best examples of creators who’ve built gigantic audiences in the past two years, simply by having their finger to the pulse of what people want.

The numbers on both sides of the equation are impressive. Lightricks exploded during the pandemic, with 42% growth in app installs in the 12 months leading up to September 2021, bringing their total to well over 500 million. Active monthly users stand at close to 30 million people. They have set themselves a revenue growth target of 40% in the year leading up to September 2022. Backed by investors like Hanaco Investment Ventures and Goldman Sachs Asset Management, they have a war chest to use acquisitions to help fuel these ambitions.

Collectively, across profiles and social channels, the D’Amelio family has over 300 million followers. They’ve been proclaimed as  “the first family of TikTok” by The Guardian, and season two of their Hulu reality TV series is expected to drop in the months ahead. Charli D’Amelio is a megastar in her own right, reigning supreme as the most followed person on TikTok, with over 136 million followers. On YouTube, she has nearly 10 million followers too. 

The family has deservedly earned a reputation for being pioneers in the creator space, and many other creators look up to them for advice.

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In a statement from the family, they revealed their motivations. “By joining Lightricks, our family can inspire the next generation of content creators to spark new ideas and bring them to life. We’re excited to support and shape the development of these game-changing tools and empower creators to follow their passions and find new inspirations for content!”

With this collaboration, Lightricks also announced the launch of The247, a place where people can find exclusive advice and behind-the-scenes content from the trenches of the creator economy, including two exclusive posts from the D’Amelio family.

One of the most interesting parts of this announcement is how it directly ties the success of Lightricks to rewards for the D’Amelio family. The potential for supernormal returns means the family will be incentivized to help Lightricks succeed. It’s a savvy move on the part of the D’Amelio family, as between their last two funding rounds, Lightricks added almost a billion dollars onto its valuation.

One area where this is already reaping benefits is in Lightricks’s latest product, Link in Bio. It stands out in the market for offering a high-quality microsite experience, despite being a free product when much of the competition is charging for products with fewer features. 

The D’Amelios have each created their own original templates that Link in Bio users can use to build their own microsites. It’s a collaboration in the ilk of how film stars have been creating guest lines for major fashion houses for years. Creators benefit from being able to use designs built by superstar creators rather than office staff.

Taking equity rather than being paid for advertising a product has been used successfully by a multitude of individuals with strong personal brands. Beyoncé famously took equity for a performance at an Uber corporate event in 2015. When they went public, her shares were worth $9 million. 

Understandably, the Lightricks team is delighted with the deal. Their CEO, Zeev Farbman, sees it as an important step in the future of the company. “The family are trailblazing the creator economy and continue to inspire up-and-coming creators worldwide. It will be a pleasure to have the family so involved in every step of the development process.” 

Potentially, this deal has significantly elevated the value of both the D’Amelio family and the Ligthricks brand. There will be many in the industry watching this story closely. We may see more social media-born stars try to emulate what the D’Amelio family has decided to do, and the results will be interesting to follow.

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