Another top exec from Quibi, which flamed out in 2020 just six months after launching, has found a new gig: Rob Post, formerly Quibi’s chief technology officer, has joined Cameo — which sells personalized video messages from celebrities — as its new CTO.
Post had joined Quibi, the ill-fated mobile streaming subscription service led by Jeffrey Katzenberg and Meg Whitman, in September 2018. Prior to that, he spent more than 10 years at Hulu, including five years as VP of engineering.
Another Quibi refugee who has started a new job is Ambereen Toubassy, former chief financial officer at the startup, who is now CFO of enterprise-software company Airtable.
Cameo, which was founded in 2017, lets consumers purchase customized celebrity video shout-outs at varying price points. Talent currently featured in Cameo’s roster (and the asking price for a personalized message) include Lindsay Lohan ($315); Nick Lachey ($250); Paula Abdul ($225); New Orleans Saints QB Drew Brees ($550); Olympic gymnast Gabby Douglas ($450); Denver Broncos running back Melvin Gordon ($200); and boxer Floyd Mayweather ($275).
In addition to Post, Cameo announced new hires including CFO Deb Schwartz (formerly with Bustle Digital Group), Melanie (Mel) Steinbach, chief people officer (formerly with McDonald’s USA), and COO Brian Frank (former head of global operations at LinkedIn).
In 2020, privately held Cameo claims, it generated about $100 million in gross revenue (up 4.5 times from the year prior), with average order value increasing by about 25% to roughly $70. The company said it served up 1.3 million messages last year, more than the previous three years combined, and added more than 10,000 new athletes, actors, comedians, musicians, artists, activists and personalities to Cameo. By the end of 2020, more than 150 Cameo personalities were earning at least $100,000 per year, according to the company.
Chicago-based Cameo said it doubled its employee base in 2020, to almost 200 employees. The company has raised $62.5 million in funding to date, from investors including from Peter Chernin’s Chernin Group.
Cameo was co-founded by Steven Galanis, a former Hollywood producer and LinkedIn exec, sports agent Martin Blencowe, and Devon Townsend, who had been a star on Twitter’s Vine.