Arcade, the management company behind global phenomenon The Sidemen, has announced a seven-figure strategic investment from Thomas Benski’s talent- and IP-led group Lumina Media to accelerate its expansion across EMEA.
This marks Arcade’s first external funding and fuels its ambition to become the leading creator-first platform and build lasting IP “that drives conversation and culture.”
The investment from Lumina Media, founded by producer and entrepreneur Thomas Benski, will bring both “capital and strategic” expertise to expand Arcade’s platform, helping it to “accelerate at the right inflection point in a growing creator economy – broadening its reach into new markets, formats and audiences.”
Arcade has helped The Sidemen grow from 1 to 50 employees since it launched in 2021. The Sidemen is one of the world’s most successful creator collectives with more than 130 million YouTube subscribers and 40 billion views. Arcade and The Sidemen have launched six businesses spanning food & beverage, venture capital and content production, including ventures into television, music, sponsorships, consumer products, and the direct-to-fan membership platform Side+.
With Schwarzenberger and Uwins spearheading the next chapter of Arcade, and O’Neill leading their in-house business management services, Arcade and Lumina will now work together to grow Arcade across EMEA and beyond. The investment will accelerate Arcade’s ability to help brands become creator-first, access The Sidemen’s unrivalled audience and expand creator IP into new formats and geographies.
Arcade marks Lumina’s 12th investment since the group launched in late 2024. Arcade joins a portfolio that includes Carrousel Studios (with Omar Sy, Louis Leterrier, and Cecile Gaget), Magna Studios (with Marisa Clifford and Davud Karbassioun), Strike (the global kids’ sports IP and brand), and Creators Corp (a Webby Award-winning game studio) – together already generating more than $100m in combined revenues.
Thomas Benski, Founder & CEO of Lumina Media, said: “Arcade is building exactly the kind of creator-led platform the market needs – where talent expands IP, builds brands, and engages consumers at scale. Jordan, Sam, and Aaron have already proved the power of their model with The Sidemen, and now we want to take it further: cementing The Sidemen as generational talent and IP with a truly global, multi-platform reach, while giving more creators the chance to become true entertainment powerhouses. We’re proud to back visionaries like the team at Arcade and The Sidemen to seize this moment and capture the full scale of the opportunity.”
Jordan Schwarzenberger, Co-founder of Arcade, said: “Our mission at Arcade has always been to unlock the true potential of creators, helping them grow from content makers into culture-shaping brands. The Sidemen have shown what’s possible when you combine authentic talent with ambition, and their journey remains central to the future we’re building. With Thomas, and his team at Lumina as active partners, we now have the strategic platform to take this model further, helping brands scale their IP, to become truly creator first, and at the heart of global culture.”
Jon Creamer
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