Matthew Buckland

Matthew Buckland

Matthew Buckland
Born Matthew James Buckland
(1974-08-22) 22 August 1974
South Africa
Residence Cape Town, South Africa
Education Rhodes University
Occupation Internet entrepreneur
Title Founder and MD of Creative Spark
Term 2010 – Present
Board member of Silicon Cape Initiative
Creative Commons
OPA/DMMA/iAB
Cognition
Awards Selected Fast Company Magazine's Most Creative People in Business (2015), Destiny Magazine: Power of 40: 40 entrepreneurs under 40 (2011), Top 100 “South Africa’s most influential media and advertising people” by The Annual (2009)
Website Company website
Memeburn.com/Burn Media
Personal weblog

Matthew Buckland is a South African Internet entrepreneur and businessman who is the founder of Creative Spark - a digital agency and publisher which was acquired in 2015 by UK firm M&C Saatchi PLC (LSE: SAA), the holding group of M&C Saatchi.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7] Buckland is also the founder of Burn Media, a suite of technology publishing brands which includes Memeburn, Ventureburn.com, Gearburn.com and others.

Buckland previously headed the online division of the Mail & Guardian, thereafter he started 20fourlabs at news24.com,[8][9][10] the largest South African online news publisher, owned by Naspers.[11] While at the Mail & Guardian Buckland founded Thought Leader.

In 2015 he was selected as a "Master of Digital", sitting down with actor Idris Elba for a "Q&A Session".[12][13]

Buckland lives in Cape Town with his wife and two daughters.

Early life

Buckland studied journalism at Rhodes University in the Eastern Cape, South Africa.[14] He worked in London for the BBC's then-commercial web arm, beeb.com as a developer, and then a web development producer.[15] He then later worked as the Internet editor for prime-time TV show, Carte Blanche, before becoming Managing Director of Mail & Guardian's online division. He is the eldest son of Andrew Buckland and Janet Buckland, a prominent South African acting family.[16][17][18][19]

Entrepreneurship

In 2010 Buckland founded Creative Spark[20] and Burn Media, which he funded himself after being unable to raise venture capital for it.[21] Five years later, in 2015, he sold a majority share in his company to the FTSE-listed agency, M&C Saatchi.[22] The deal included the sale of both the digital agency and the publishing arm, which owns titles such as Memeburn and Ventureburn.[23] Ventureburn is a site that reports on the startup, entrepreneur and investor ecosystems in South Africa, Kenya and Nigeria.

He was the Master of Ceremonies[24] at the Silicon Cape Initiative launch event and was elected to its inaugural board. The Silicon Cape Initiative is a South African-based organization which aims to turn the Western Cape into a high-tech startup hub. Buckland credits this organisation for inspiring him to move out of the corporate world into entrepreneurship.[25]

In 2012 Buckland was recognised in the Power of 40: 40 Entrepreneurs Under 40 "Doing Interesting Things"[26]

In 2013 and 2014 he was a member of the Cape Town chapter of Entrepreneurs Organisation.[27][28]

Awards

Buckland’s industry accolades include:

References

  1. ↑ M&C Saatchi acquires SA’s Creative Spark (Fin24.com)
  2. ↑ Saatchi acquires Memeburn publisher (ItWeb)
  3. ↑ Creative Spark sold to M&C Saatchi (Moneyweb)
  4. ↑ BREAKING: Creative Spark acquired by M&C Saatchi PLC (Bizcommunity.com)
  5. ↑ Interview: Matthew Buckland on M&C Saatchi/Creative Spark deal (Marklives)
  6. ↑ M&C SAATCHI ACQUIRES MAJORITY STAKE IN DIGITAL AGENCY CREATIVE SPARK (HTXT)
  7. ↑ M&C Saatchi Acquires Creative Spark in South Africa (M&C Saatchi)
  8. ↑ "Matthew on the move", It Web
  9. ↑ "300 Young South Africans: Technology (Part 2)", Mail & Guardian, 12 June 2009 (accessed 16 January 2012).
  10. ↑ Rudolph Muller, "SA online professionals do their own thing", MyBroadband January 6, 2011 (accessed 16 January 2012).
  11. ↑ South Africa’s biggest websites
  12. ↑ The Oude Meester Tour, Day 2 – Cape Town
  13. ↑ Idris Elba tours SA for Oude Meester
  14. ↑ Matthew Buckland, Poynter.(accessed 16 January 2012)
  15. ↑ Matthew Buckland Bio
  16. ↑ On the stage - ANDREW BUCKLAND, BDFM, 2010
  17. ↑ Buckland's got a play date with obsession, IOL, 2015
  18. ↑ People of note - Women of Inspiration - Community Buckland Janet
  19. ↑ 200 Young South Africans: Arts and Culture
  20. ↑ Matthew Buckland to pursue creative spark'
  21. ↑ Matthew Buckland Buckland interview on the Extraordinary Life podcast, (2014)
  22. ↑ Breaking: M&C Saatchi PLC acquires independent digital player Creative Spark'
  23. ↑ Creative Spark sold to M&C Saatchi'
  24. ↑ Enter the Silicon Cape
  25. ↑ The Unwavering Persistence of Entrepreneurs
  26. ↑ Valuable lessons from a “chicken” entrepreneur (2014)
  27. ↑ Ventureburn.com
  28. ↑ High Octane, EO Blog
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