Hobby Clubs Are the New Influencer Channel

Marketers are increasingly sponsoring interest-based offline communities, from Rummikub clubs and dad stroller groups to book clubs and cold plunge collectives, as a way to reach audiences in moments that digital advertising can't access. RummiKlubLA, founded just over a year ago, has already partnered with Astral Tequila and Tower 28, expanded to New York, London, and Miami, and sells branded game sets through Revolve. Brooklyn Stroll Club, a 2,000-member fatherhood community founded in late 2024, has landed deals with Todd Snyder, BabyBjörn, and Square.

The model differs from influencer campaigns in what it delivers. Sponsors get product testing in real environments, grassroots consumer research, and access to tight-knit audiences with high brand loyalty. Brand budgets in the space currently range from $10,000 to $100,000, according to Andrew Roth, co-founder of Offline, a platform that matches marketers with offline groups and measures returns through check-ins and attendees' social reach.

Not everyone is convinced the trend has legs. Some observers argue that the most valuable communities are deliberately moving away from sponsorship and visibility, and that commercial saturation will eventually push people toward spaces that can't be monetized. Roth is betting the opposite, drawing a direct line to the $32 billion influencer marketing industry as the model offline community sponsorship is likely to follow.

Full story: WSJ