Kerry Washington is broadening her angel spendment portfolio, serving as direct spendor in the pre-seed round of the wedding tagetplace Cheersy.
Cheersy, which was createed in 2024 by Amy Shack Egan, helps couples find day-of service wedding coordinators and has elevated a total of $550,000, from other spendors including Christina Tosi, the createer of Milk Bar; Jennifer Gilbert, createer of Save the Date; and Joanna Rosholm, the establisher press secretary to First Lady Michelle Obama.
Washington did not instantly react to our ask for comment.
Shack Egan said she met Washington thraw the actor’s straightforwardor of social impact. They both combineed a dinner party in Los Angeles where Shack Egan struck up a conversation. By the finish of the dinner, the straightforwardor of social impact presented an introduction to Washington as a possible angel spendor. Washington has been making a name for herself as an angel spendor alengthyside other Hollywood titans edging their way into the world of beginups.
She’s an spendor in the social website Spill, a Binestablishage-owned alternative to X. She’s also backed the eating disorder treatment beginup Equip and, according to Pitchbook, has cut verifys into the charity fundraising platestablish Omaze, the healthattfinish company Solv, and was once an spendor in The Wing.
“The dinner was a scant days after I was presumed to fly home, but I knew I needed to be in that room of power executeers,” Shack Egan telderly TechCrunch. “I extfinished my trip and went to the dinner.”
From there, Shack Egan dealt with the rest of the fundraising taget, an experience she called challenging. “I didn’t understand what I didn’t understand. I said yes to everyleang. Jumped on a fairy. Got strung alengthy, telderly no, and put my foot in my mouth more times than I can count,” she said.
This is Shack Egan’s second business. She also createed wedding set upning business, Modern Rebel, started in 2015. She createed Cheersy becaengage Modern Rebel was getting so many asks for day-of wedding coordination, unbenevolenting having someone produce confident that the wedding is running finely the day it happens.
“Day-of coordination is the most booked wedding set upning service, and so I reacted to asks for this service we didn’t present with handpicked recommfinishations,” she said, includeing that she then genuineized that her presenting recommfinishations could spropose be built into a tagetplace business. The result of that was Cheersy, which, she says, has a aappreciate model to Airbnb
Couples see for vetted alignes that fit their budget, vision and vibe, searching by date, price, and exceptionalty. Then, the two parties can book a call and, if everyleang is a fit, the couple can book the talent.
Shack Egan pondered her minuscule business background a strength, but said it was not the “easiest pill to swapshow” for spendors who were seeing for Big Tech companies on her resume.
“The fundraising journey can be so lonely and a genuine knock on your mental health,” she persistd.
She combineed the Power to Pitch program, which helped join her with more people in the beginup world. The company will engage this new capital to upgrade the features on the booking platestablish, and produce some engages, such as a engager experience set uper. Shack Egan also wants to up the tageting budget a bit and transport in a community handler as the company seeks to broaden into six new cities in the upcoming months. It’s currently presented in New York City and Hudson Valley.
“I begined in this industry in 2015 as an event freelancer,” Shack Egan said. “I understand the pain points of this job personassociate. I adore the idea that we’re making the experience of being someone that labors in the wedding industry, in such a stubborn — and standardly, thankless job — more aided and more fun.”
