Jan 24, 2025
Lidiane Jones stepped into the role of CEO at Bumble, the popular online dating platform, in January 2024. However, just one year later on Jan. 17, Bumble announced that founder Whitney Wolfe Herd will return to take over as CEO, replacing Jones in mid-March.
When Wolfe Herd founded Bumble in 2014, the platform’s signature feature — wherein women make the first move — was designed to create a safer and more empowering online dating experience. However, under Jones, one of the most significant changes was the removal of this core feature, fundamentally altering how men and women initiate conversations on the app.
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However, after Bumble introduced a feature called “Opening Moves” last spring — which allowed female users to set a prompt for male suitors to respond to — shares tumbled by approximately 54%.
Bumble’s decision to alter from its signature feature was met with mixed reactions. Some users — men in particular — expressed that the app had lost what set it apart from its competitors.
Questioning the core mission
Bumble attracted users with its unique value proposition — putting women in control of their dating experience. By allowing women to initiate conversations, the platform shifted the traditional dynamics of online dating, positioning itself as a champion of female empowerment and offering a sense of agency that resonated with modern daters.
“I never started this company to be a publicly-traded CEO,” Wolfe Herd told Fortune when she stepped down in 2023. “I started this company to solve a problem that I experienced. I started this company to solve problems for women around the world.”
But over the years, as Wolfe Herd told the New York Times, Bumble’s female users say they found making the first move “a lot of work” and “a burden.” The Opening Moves feature was meant to be a release valve for some of that pressure.
But it doesn’t appear to have had the effect the company was looking for. In Q3 2024, revenue slipped by 1% to $274 million, despite a 10% increase in paying users to 2.9 million.
Prior to these changes, Bumble’s Q4 2023 performance painted a more optimistic picture, when total annual revenue surged 16% to $1.05 billion and app revenue climbed 22% to $844.8 million. Paid users also grew by 21% year-over-year to 2.7 million, adding 83,000 new subscribers in the quarter.
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Part of Bumble’s trouble may be linked to a declining interest in apps in general, as users cope with “app fatigue.” However, while it’s been a challenging time for dating apps in general, Match, the parent company of popular apps like Tinder, Hinge, Match, OKCupid and Plenty of Fish, comparatively saw a 1.3% increase in revenue in Q3 2024 to $895.5 million.
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From private to public
Taking a company public can be a game-changer — but not always for the better.
The shift from private to public ownership introduces new priorities, as the demands of shareholders and market expectations take center stage. Unlike private companies, which have the flexibility to focus on long-term vision without external pressures, public companies must answer to quarterly earnings reports and the ever-watchful eyes of investors.
Some users believe these pressures have negatively impacted companies they once loved. “Bumble was better before it became a publicly traded company. Now it’s all about how to monetize the app as much as possible before it dies,” shared one frustrated user on Reddit.
Whether it’s expanding into new markets, cutting costs, or tweaking core features to attract a broader audience, the challenge is clear: balancing financial performance with staying true to the company’s original mission. And Bumble isn’t alone in this struggle.
Casper Sleep, the trendy mattress-in-a-box brand, faced similar challenges. After going public in February 2020 at $12 per share, the company struggled to stand out in a crowded market and ultimately went private again less than two years later. The combination of stiff competition and the infrequent nature of mattress purchases made it difficult for Casper to sustain success as a public company.
As more startups eye IPOs as the next step, how to grow without losing what made them successful in the first place remains.
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Victoria Vesovski is a Toronto-based Staff Reporter at Moneywise, where she covers the intersection of personal finance, lifestyle and trending news. She holds an Honours Bachelor of Arts from the University of Toronto, a postgraduate certificate in Publishing from Toronto Metropolitan University and a Master’s degree in American Journalism from New York University’s Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute. Her work has been featured in publications including Apple News, Yahoo Finance, MSN Money, Her Campus Media and The Click.
