Charlotte VC firm owner is doubling down on eSports
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
After investing in one of the nation’s leading eSports teams, the managing team behind Charlotte VC firm SierraMaya360 is doubling down on the industry.
Late this spring, SierraMaya360 inked a seven-figure deal with Team EnVyUs, one of the leaders in the burgeoning professional video gaming industry.
The deal included bringing Team EnVyUs to Charlotte. Under owner Mike “Hastr0” Rufail, the team will be building out a training facility and public entertainment venue here in town.
[Agenda story: eSports powerhouse Team EnVyUs signs a deal with Charlotte venture capital firm SierraMaya360]
/2024/01/06/1704558215824.jpg)
Photo credit: Turner Sports ELeague
SierraMaya360 co-founder Amish Shah has now set up two businesses under the eSports umbrella — a careers site and an agency.
RektJobs is essentially a job board for positions in the eSports industry. Careers run the gamut from creative marketing to game producers to event managers — all at companies in the gaming space.
The other business, RektAgency, is an umbrella for a lot of different services in the eSports space, from tournament planning to M&A.
“eSports companies, teams, hiring managers are all having a hard time to find top talent,” Shah said.
/2024/01/06/1704558216320.jpg)
Both are owned by Shah personally, with fellow SierraMaya360 partner Jeff Brokaw as a co-founder. The Rekt team also includes Matthew Worsman, Charlotte entrepreneur and co-founder of Rock-a-Print.
Shah says Rekt will be looking to add 15-20 people in the next six months.
Bottom line: It’s fascinating to see Shah doubling down on eSports.
The sport is positioned to become the next huge sports/entertainment category. Companies are ready to pour substantial amounts of money at it (if they haven’t already; see Amazon’s nearly $1 billion acquisition of Twitch and TBS’s eSports programming). This is the right time to get on board.