Axios HQ acquires Mixing Board
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Axios HQ — the internal communications software company that spun off from Axios Media in 2022 — has purchased the communications membership organization Mixing Board, its first acquisition since its founding in 2021.
Why it matters: Membership groups are trending as the communications field has evolved and practitioners look for ways to hone their craft and find community.
State of play: A group of former CCOs and recruiters recently launched CommsCollectiv for those who hold fractional roles, Financial Narrative was established for communicators working in the finance field, The PRNet serves those in lifestyle industries, and we recently launched a membership for Axios Communicators readers who want more content and events, called Axios Communicators Pro.
- Meanwhile, more established membership organizations like Page Society and PRSA are at a crossroads as they bring on new leadership.
Details: As part of the deal, Mixing Board's investors — Bloomberg Beta as the lead — have reinvested in Axios HQ.
- Axios HQ will also absorb Mixing Board's 450-person membership and the 1,200 members within its free sister organization Comm(s)unity.
- Both Axios HQ and Mixing Board declined to share the financial terms of the deal, which closed on Nov. 27.
Zoom in: All Mixing Board employees will join Axios HQ, with founder Sean Garrett becoming chief communications officer and president of Mixing Board.
- Current fees for Mixing Board run $65 per month. Garrett said he does not anticipate these fees changing under the new ownership.
What they're saying: "For Mixing Board and Comm(s)unity members, this will mean more events, more insights and more best practices," says Axios HQ CEO Roy Schwartz.
- "For HQ, we're going to be able to do a lot more product development, both on services and on software [by] being able to understand the workflow, talk to the community members, and help understand what's changing, so that we can adapt the service and the offerings we have."
Between the lines: It will also provide more services and support for internal communications, which Garrett said is in high demand among Mixing Board members.
- "Our members, no matter how senior they are, whether its 30 years' experience or 15 years' experience, see this industry moving super fast, and they want to be better at their jobs, but they also want to have a broader prism and cover any blind spots that they have," Garrett said.
What's next: Axios HQ and Mixing Board will launch its first joint product, an internal communications training, in 2025.
Disclaimers: Axios HQ split off from Axios in 2022, after Axios Media was acquired by Cox Enterprises. Hawkins is a 2022-24 member of Mixing Board.
