Alfie Deyes Forming New Company To Collaborate With Early-Stage Startups

One of the biggest YouTube stars in the U.K., 24-year-old Alfie Deyes, shed some light on his next career steps amid rumblings that he is departing longtime talent management firm Gleam Futures.

At the Lisbon Web Summit, Deyes told Business Insider that he wants to enter the startup space. Deyes is forming a new company, he said, that will invest in early-stage startups and also help to grow nascent businesses with his massive social following — which comprises more than 11.3 million YouTube subscribers across three total channels. He said that one potential investment includes a gin company, while he’s also interested in the restaurant industry and tech sphere. “It won’t be ‘Alfie Deyes’ [branded],” he told Business Insider of potential collaborations, “just things I’ve helped shape.”

Deyes was being pitched by startups throughout the Lisbon Web Summit, and his still-unnamed company is set to launch in the new year. Thus far, he has hired a project manager, brands manager, operations staff, a legal and finance team, and a sales staff, according to the outlet. Deyes previously said in a YouTube video that his girlfriend, fellow creator Zoe ‘Zoella’ Sugg

, will also be involved in the venture.

“Everything I’ve experienced in the last nine years has almost been like a bubble,” Deyes told Business Insider of primarily working on brand deals in his career thus far, and not looking to bigger opportunities. “I’ve done extremely well in this bubble, and I’ve had so much fun, but I haven’t seen what is [out there].”

You can read more about his imminent plans right here.