Scoop: Bebo hires Shaa Wasmund as UK MD
Social networking powerhouse Bebo has has hired veteran marketer, entrepreneur and digital expert Sháá Wasmund as the Managing Director of their UK operations.
Following on the heels of the $15M round of funding led by Benchmark Capital Europe, Bebo UK will be incubated at Benchmark's London office while searching for their own space.
I've met with Sháá many times, and I think that this is a fantastic fit. She's an American but has been in the UK since age 10. She has the energy of a US executive, the sensibility and style of a European, and the accent of a true Brit. It is an interesting combination.
A graduate of The London School of Economics, Sháá set up her first business in 1995, and her work on creating the Dyson brand with James Dyson won her numerous awards including PR of the Year, Campaign of The Year and the Cosmopolitan Business Woman of the Year.
In December 2000, Sháá raised substantial funding to create www.mykindaplace.com, a a UK internet magazine for teen girls, backed by BSkyB and Freeserve which became profitable within 14 months.
Rumor has it that at the moment, she is finishing work on a new TV show for Channel 4 and will start work full-time for Bebo in early July.
Barry Maloney led the Bebo round for Benchmark and sits on their board. I'm sure that Bebo will benefit greatly from his expertise and contacts. Plus, Benchmark can keep an eye on things from close range rather than having to rely on reports from the mother ship back in California. A win-win situation for all involved.
With 88% of 18-34 in IRE, 25M users overall, and 100M impressions/day, Bebo is the market leader in the UK and Ireland. The launch of new vertical services (the first rumored to be Music) are imminent. More on Bebo's stats here and here.
Update: Game on: MySpace announces the same
MySpace targets European expansion (Guardian Unlimited)
MySpace has hired David Fischer as its first managing director for the UK and Europe as the social networking site gears up for further international expansion ...
MySpace targets international expansion (FT)
European Expansion For MySpace (WebProNews)
MySpace to hit Europe (mad.co.uk)
MySpace hires David Fischer as managing director (Brand Republic)
Technorati Tags: social.networks, 2.0, startups, bebo, myspace
Tuesday, June 20, 2006
 Comments:
hello can you please give me a link to get onto www.bebo.com please
thankyou for your time
miss chelsea anne greenhalgh
age 15yrs
# posted by : 12:49 PM, February 02, 2007
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