Minneapolis-based Lemonada Media behind Markle podcast bought by Swedish company

A Swedish conglomerate is acquiring a majority stake in Minnesota-based Lemonada Media, a podcast company producing shows featuring stars such as iCarly’s Jennette McCurdy and Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle.

Bloomberg reported Stockholm-based PodX Group is spending roughly $30 million to acquire a majority stake of Lemonada, citing a person familiar with the terms. A company spokesperson did not confirm the figure.

The Minnesota Star Tribune has a contract with Lemonada to consult on podcast content.

Lemonada’s revenue and audience growth went “skyrocketing” last year, a news release said. The company is a top podcast network based on audience and revenue, the release continued.

Founders Jessica Cordova Kramer and Stephanie Wittels Wachs said in a release, “We will be PodX’s first U.S. partner, and we‘re proud to bring our authentic storytelling approach to the existing global family and thrilled about the possibilities that lie ahead as we continue turning lemons into lemonade, now on a much larger scale.”

Lemonada’s website says the company employs a staff of nearly 50.

In a statement Tuesday, a company spokesperson said Lemonada doesn’t "anticipate any staffing changes as a result of PodX becoming our majority shareholder."

Once the acquisition closes, the two companies “will leverage each other’s strengths to drive future expansion,” the release said. Lemonada will continue operating under existing leadership, the release continued.

The company was founded in 2019 as Wachs and Kramer were coping with the deaths of their brothers due to overdoses. The company’s first show, called “The Last Day,” explored the opioid epidemic by zooming in on the experience of a single person’s last day alive.

“We imagine death to be somewhere in the very distant future when we are old and wrinkled and gray and surrounded by loved ones reflecting with pride and joy on a life well-lived,” Wachs said in the series’ trailer. “That’s not what this show is about. This is a show about what’s not supposed to happen.”

Since the show premiered, the company has morphed into one of the biggest podcast networks in the United States, the founders said in the release. The company has launched more than 50 original podcasts and nearly 40 partner shows.

Additional celebrity hosts include transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney and comedian Sarah Silverman.

“PodX’s global expertise and shared passion for impactful audio content will help amplify the voices and stories we believe the world needs to hear and allow us to work alongside best-in-class peer companies worldwide,” the founders said.