A bit of late-breaking news for your Thursday: All Things D reports that men’s lifestyle brand Thrillist has raised a $13 million Series A, led by Oak Investment Partners.
Joining the funding fun were family outfit Lerer Ventures and Bob Pittman’s Pilot Group. Pilot was the first firm to put money into Thrillist, helping founder Ben Lerer get off the ground back in 2005 with $2 million in seed money. This is the first outside capital they’ve raised since.
(Fun fact: Mr. Lerer the elder and Mr. Pittman also own a piece of the Mets together, along with several other investors. Presumably the successful ecommerce company gives them far less heartache.)
According to All Things D:
[Thrillist founder Ben] Lerer plans to plow a bunch of the new money into an M&A plan focused on media sites, so he can build out that part of the business again.
The idea: Find more dude-ish sites that would compliment the food, booze and clothes verticals Thrillist already covers — like gadgets and travel. Cue requisite go-big-or-go-home mission plan: “What we’re looking at is, what does Condé Nast look like if it starts today?
Now that’s quite a loaded question, Mr. Lerer.
