Growlr, the dating app, is getting a new owner and is slated for a comprehensive renewal in the coming years. Perry Street Software, the company behind the queer dating apps Scruff and Jack’d, has acquired Growlr, the bear-focused platform from The Meet Group. Perry Street announced on Tuesday a multi-million-dollar investment spanning several years to overhaul Growlr both technically and visually. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
Growlr was founded in 2010 and is aimed especially at gay and bisexual men in the bear community and their fans. According to Perry Street, the app now serves nearly half a million people daily. The previous owner The Meet Group had acquired Growlr in 2019 from founder Coley Cummiskey — at the time for just under twelve million US dollars.
Perry Street is an American, privately held company founded in 2010 by Eric Silverberg and Johnny Skandros around the in-house Scruff development. The firm, headquartered in Miami Beach (Florida), acquired Jack’D in 2019 from the Manhunt operator Online Buddies.
More brand presence for the revamped app
For early 2027, Perry Street announced a completely redesigned version of Growlr. It will feature a new look, a new logo, and redesigned profiles. The ability to share content in chats will also be expanded. Two well-known features will return or be expanded: With “Shouts,” users can broadcast a message to multiple people within a defined radius, while “Flashes” will come back as a way to boost a profile’s visibility. Additionally, Perry Street plans to overhaul the video features and step up efforts against bots and spam.
Growlr will not only be developed as a dating app. Perry Street aims to anchor the brand more deeply within the international bear community and to support more Bear Weeks and bear events in the United States and other countries moving forward. The company will also expand its presence on social media. This will be complemented by collaborations with bear influencers and original content for Growlr.
In spring 2027, there is also a plan for the first clothing collection, developed in collaboration with renowned fashion designers. Perry Street has also taken over the domain growlr.com. Interested users will be able to participate in a beta program for the new app in the coming weeks.
