The untold story behind CreativeLive

Chase Jarvis & Craig Swanson

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Updated: November 19th, 2023

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Chase Jarvis and Craig Swanson co-founded CreativeLive in 2010 to inspire and assist individuals by providing them with tools to enhance their creative abilities.

They aim to provide an online arena where innovative educators can engage with upcoming creative professionals. Within a few months of launch, their free live seminars had tens of thousands of spectators.

Chase, the CEO, is an award-winning artist, entrepreneur, best-selling book, and one of the most prominent photographers of the last two decades. In 1998, he received his Ph.D. in Philosophy from the University of Washington.

He advises Fortune 100 companies and has worked with firms such as Apple, Nike, and Red Bull. Plus, sportsmen like Serena Williams and Tony Hawk; and recognized icons such as Lady Gaga and Richard Branson have worked with him.

Some of the company’s key investments include secured $21.5 million in Series B fundraising in November 2013, headed by Felicis Ventures, Greylock Partners, Social Capital, and CAA Ventures. The firm then obtained $21.5 million in February 2015 as a supplement to its initial Series B financing from Lepe Partners, Greylock Partners, Social Capital, and GV.

Over 650 qualified educators and creative experts work for the company, which serves over 10,000,000 individual students worldwide. The company now has an anticipated annual revenue of $4.9 million. Fiverr purchased CreativeLive on October 7, 2021. The transaction’s terms were not disclosed.

Craig always focused on being the support structure for creatives.
He focused on creating a platform where creatives would perform in front of a live audience.
They launched a 10-week course as a side project and eventually made $35000 in revenue.
CreativeLive broke the $1M revenue mark in the first year after launch.