In 2008, brothers John and Leo Resig bought a photo blog from GoDaddy for $9.99 under the name Resignation Media. At the time, the pair couldn’t have predicted how massive that photo blog, now known worldwide as theChive, would become.
From partnerships with cruise ships to deals with Bill Murray, the company has been bursting into new verticals as they stake their claim on the humor and entertainment industry.
"TheChive's progression has built a following and community that no other company really has," said James Perkins, human resources generalist.
Online and entertainment popularity
Over the years, Resignation Media has experienced explosive growth. The company has an international community of 30 million “Chivers," 14 million people have downloaded theChive's mobile app, and they receive more than 370 million monthly gallery views on the website.
And that's just online. In 2015, Resignation Media launched Chive TV, offering a commercial-free channel dedicated to viral videos curated through theChive's website for bars and consumers. And this past September, Royal Caribbean Cruises locked in a deal with Resignation Media to stream theChive channel on all 27 ships in the pool deck areas, in addition to the 350 bars already subscribed — averaging about 30,000 viewers a month.
Breaking into golf merch and more
But the growing business has been expanding in directions outside of media as well. Recently, Resignation Media launched William Murray Golf, a golf apparel line humorously dedicated to Bill Murray, which now features design input from Murray and his brothers.
Murray first got involved with theChive following sales of t-shirts that featured the comedian's face. When Murray caught wind of the widely successful t-shirt line, all he asked was that theChive sponsor his annual charity golf tournament in exchange for capitalizing on his image.
Beyond the hilarity and the gimmicky t-shirts, theChive has also not slowed down its humanitarian efforts. Resignation Media founded Chive Charities in 2010, and has since raised more than $10 million for emergency responders, veterans, children with special needs and individuals with rare medical conditions.
Since its inception, donations through Chive Charities have funded 35 building renovations, 55 vehicles for the Americans with Disabilities Act, 347 pieces of medical and therapy equipment, and more than a thousand initiatives supporting individuals in need.
Most recently, they held a flash charity campaign in October, raising over $135,000 from donations in under 24 hours for a Tulsa-based special needs day care. They surpassed the goal by over 135 percent.
As far as plans for the future, Perkins said they want to continue growing — and growing big — making sure to do “better everything.”
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