DriveTribe, the ‘automotive community platform’ run under the auspices of Jeremy Clarkson and his sidekicks Richard Hammond and James May is closing down, despite having attracted big money from major investors.
Launched in 2016, DriveTribe was designed to build a strong platform for the discussion, promotion and celebration of all things automotive, calling on the input of some of the industry’s biggest hitters.
But it has struggled financially and its current online statement says: “Over the past five years, we’ve had huge fun getting to know you all, and sharing in the adventures and ideas of this great global community which has grown far beyond our expectations.
“For many months we’ve been facing significant industry challenges, which unfortunately aren’t going anywhere. The protracted global shortage of computer chips has caused a number of challenges for the automotive industry, and led to severe reductions in marketing budgets across the industry. This has made for an incredibly difficult operating environment for businesses like ours which are dependent on advertising.
“We, therefore, unfortunately will be bringing the DriveTribe and FoodTribe websites and apps, and the business behind them, to a close at the end of this month.”
Some commentators reckon they just failed to pull in the crowds to make it a viable home for advertisers. Whatever has happened, it’s ta-ra to DriveTribe.