Sofar Sounds: Charting the next stage of growth
Subject
Organisational Behaviour, Strategy and Entrepreneurship
Authors / Editors
Birkinshaw J; Mather D; Stroube B; Mohliver A C
Biographies
Publication Year
2020
Abstract
This case traces the development of a live entertainment company, Sofar Sounds, from a conversation among three friends about their frustrations with live music events, through early success and now to a point where the CEO, Rafe Offer, has to make important decisions about its future growth. Sofar Sounds’ business model is to organize small sized music gigs with unknown artists, trying to recapture the ‘old days’ of the intimacy and atmosphere of small venue music shows. It progressed from being a “hobby” in 2009, with occasional gigs in London and New York, to a venture-capital backed venture in 2016 with two hundred gigs a month across more than twenty countries. The case describes the challenges of rapid growth in today’s digital economy, and it opens up important issues for debate about ‘platform’ business models, growth trajectories, balancing social and financial goals, and building the capabilities needed for long-term growth.
Topic List
Business models, Corporate planning, Growth strategy, Multi-sided platforms, Social entrepreneurship
Industry
Music
LBS Case Number
CS-18-014
Location
United Kingdom
Publication Notes
Available on ECCH
No
