Bolder Events

What Bolder Events does

Bolder Events is a privately held event services and software company founded in 2007 by Linda Shaw and Penny Tompkins, headquartered in Denver, Colorado. The company serves nonprofit organizations and schools across the United States, providing professional event management for fundraising galas, silent and live auctions, luncheons, golf tournaments, and hybrid or virtual events. Its core technology asset is Bolderbid, a proprietary auction and event management software platform that supports no-app mobile bidding, event landing pages, customizable registration websites, mass guest messaging, text-to-give functionality, and live event streaming. Bolder Events also operates as a software-agnostic services provider, supporting third-party fundraising platforms including Greater Giving, ClickBid, OneCause, and Bloomerang, which enables the company to serve nonprofits regardless of their existing software stack.

The company generates revenue through four streams: onsite professional event services (check-in/check-out, mobile and paper bidding management, silent and live auction management, paddle raise donations), SaaS subscriptions for Bolderbid, transaction fees from auction package sales sourced through Latitude Sports Marketing, and one-hour consultation sessions priced at $250 per session (credited toward full-service packages). Pricing for software and full-service packages is custom and not publicly disclosed. Go-to-market is sales-led and event-driven, combining direct inbound via website inquiry and demo request forms with a partner referral network that includes auctioneers, event planners, venues, and software providers. In 2026, Bolder Events expanded to the West Coast through a strategic partnership with California-based TBD Connects. The company has scaled from 19 events in its founding year to more than 300 events annually over 18 years of bootstrapped operations.

Name

Bolder Events

Legal name

Bolder Events

Website

https://bolderevents.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Bolder Events is a Denver-based event services and software company providing professional fundraising event management and its proprietary Bolderbid auction platform to nonprofit organizations and schools across the United States.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Nonprofit Event Management Services

NAICS

Promoters of Performing Arts, Sports, and Similar Events without Facilities (711320)

SIC

Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro primary industry

Sports Fundraising & Development Services (Foundations, NIL Collectives Support) (MPAKAKAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

Community Fundraisers & Charity Events (Gala/Walks excluded) (MPAGAEAK)

Keywords

• Nonprofit event services
• Auction management software
• Fundraising event management
• Mobile bidding platform
• Silent auction services

Headquarters

HQ city

Denver

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Professional Event Services: Onsite event management for nonprofit galas, luncheons, golf tournaments, and other fundraising events. Services include check-in/check-out, mobile and paper bidding management, silent auction management, paddle raise donations, and event-day operations managed by professionally trained staff.
2. Software Subscriptions (Bolderbid): SaaS auction and event management software delivered via web and mobile. Includes landing page creation, registration websites, bidding platforms, and communication tools. Clients can use Bolderbid independently or bundled with services.
3. Auction Packages: Sale of auction packages and items to nonprofit clients, sourced through partners like Latitude Sports Marketing (sports, celebrity, and entertainment memorabilia).
4. Consultation Services: One-hour consultation sessions on event best practices, software selection, item procurement, and sponsorship maximization. Priced at $250 per session, with fee applied as a deposit toward full-service package.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Bolder Events provides professional onsite event management services and proprietary auction software (Bolderbid) to nonprofit organizations and schools. Services cover galas, luncheons, golf tournaments, silent and live auctions, paddle raises, and hybrid/virtual events, including check-in, mobile and paper bidding, and donation processing. The company also supports multiple third-party fundraising software platforms (Greater Giving, ClickBid, OneCause, Bloomerang) and supplies auction packages through partner Latitude Sports Marketing.

Product overview

Bolder Events operates as a nonprofit event services company offering a unified platform combining proprietary Bolderbid Software with professional event management services. The product portfolio centers on Bolderbid Software, an auction and ticketing platform that provides mobile bidding, event landing pages, customizable registration, mass messaging, text-to-give, and live streaming capabilities. This core software is complemented by service packages including auction events, virtual events, fund-a-need events, and consultation, as well as additional services for item procurement, digital marketing, and event production. The company also supports multiple third-party fundraising software platforms (Greater Giving, ClickBid, OneCause, Bloomerang) and offers a dedicated auction packages offering through a partnership with Latitude Sports Marketing.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Bolderbid Software Proprietary auction and event management SaaS platform for nonprofit fundraising events. Supports no-app mobile bidding, event landing pages, customizable registration websites with multiple ticket and sponsor tiers, mass email and SMS messaging, text-to-give, and real-time live streaming for virtual events. Can be used independently by nonprofits or bundled with Bolder Events' onsite services.
• Auction Events Service

Quantifiable outcome

• Grown from 19 events in founding year (2007) to 300+ events annually — a 15x+ increase over 18 years
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Feature7 records

Partnerships

23 partnerships are on record, tiered flagship / core, core and minor.

• TBD Connectsflagship / coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026In 2026, TBD Connects and Bolder Events joined forces to extend the 'one-stop shop' for event success to the West Coast. TBD Connects brings expertise in seamless, customized event planning and 'Dream Bolder' consulting; Bolder Events provides industry-leading fundraising software and hands-on auction support. The partnership is represented by Robyn Wilkie-Fritzsche and Kris Witt in California.
• The Gala TeamcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAuctioneer partner listed on the Bolder Events Partners page, providing professional auctioneer services to Bolder Events nonprofit clients.
• Behr BenefitscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAuctioneer partner. Testimonial on site states: 'I am beyond grateful for the amazing Bolder Events team! We feel completely at ease when they are at an event with us. They truly care for each client they represent, and it shows in their actions.'
• Goodman Global Consulting & EventscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAuctioneer partner. Testimonial: 'Bolder Events is outstanding! Linda Shaw and her staff are hands on, problem solvers, great communicators and they work very hard for their clients!'
• Beyond the Call AuctionsminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAuctioneer partner listed on the Bolder Events Partners page.
• Libby Live AuctionsminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAuctioneer partner listed on the Bolder Events Partners page.
• Adam Kevil AuctioneerminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAuctioneer partner listed on the Bolder Events Partners page.
• Auctions by DaniminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAuctioneer partner listed on the Bolder Events Partners page.
• Debbie ScheerminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAuctioneer partner listed on the Bolder Events Partners page.
• VGL AuctionsminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAuctioneer partner listed on the Bolder Events Partners page.
• Latitude Sports MarketingcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerAuction package partner providing no-risk sports, celebrity, and entertainment memorabilia to use as auction items. Nonprofits can utilize these items to raise maximum revenue while bringing 'wow' factor to events. Located at pages.auctionpackages.com/bolder-events.
• John Tobey EventsminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorEvent planner partner listed on the Bolder Events Partners page.
• Synergy Event ManagementcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorEvent planner partner. Testimonial: 'Bolder Events treats each event like they are part of the planning team. They are just as invested and dedicated to a positive experience as the client — from start to finish!' Represented by Angie Jeffords.
• Kelli KindelminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorEvent planner partner listed on the Bolder Events Partners page.
• Denver Art MuseumminorOthersVenue partner listed on the Bolder Events Partners page for event rentals and nonprofit events.
• Seawell BallroomminorOthersVenue partner (Denver Center for the Performing Arts) listed on the Bolder Events Partners page.
• Denver Museum of Nature & ScienceminorOthersVenue partner listed on the Bolder Events Partners page.
• Limelight BoulderminorOthersVenue partner (Limelight Hotels Boulder) listed on the Bolder Events Partners page.
• Cielo Castle PinesminorOthersVenue partner listed on the Bolder Events Partners page.
• Boulder JCCminorOthersVenue partner listed on the Bolder Events Partners page.
• Greater GivingcoreTechnology or IntegrationThird-party fundraising software that Bolder Events supports alongside its own Bolderbid platform, enabling clients who already use Greater Giving to leverage Bolder Events' professional services.
• ClickBidcoreTechnology or IntegrationThird-party fundraising software integrated/supported by Bolder Events, allowing clients using ClickBid to access Bolder Events' professional auction services.
• OneCausecoreTechnology or IntegrationThird-party fundraising software integrated/supported by Bolder Events, enabling clients who prefer OneCause's platform to still engage Bolder Events' service team.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Cvent: Cvent is a large-scale enterprise event management platform. While focused on corporate and association events rather than nonprofit fundraisers, they overlap in the event registration and management technology layer for large-scale galas.
• Eventbrite: Eventbrite is a large incumbent ticketing and event management platform. While broader and not nonprofit-specialized, they compete at the event registration and ticketing layer for nonprofit galas and fundraising events.
• Bonterra (Network for Good / Social Solutions): Bonterra is a large nonprofit software portfolio including Network for Good, Social Solutions, and other giving platforms. They serve the same nonprofit buyers as Bolder Events but offer a much broader suite across fundraising, case management, and donor CRM rather than focusing on auctions and event services.

Direct peers

• Funraise: Funraise is a nonprofit fundraising platform offering donation forms, event ticketing, auctions, and CRM functionality. They serve the same nonprofit customer segment as Bolder Events and compete across both software and bundled services.
• ClickBid: ClickBid is a direct competitor in mobile bidding and silent auction software for nonprofit events, also listed as a third-party platform Bolder Events supports. They target the same nonprofit event buyers with comparable feature sets.
• QGiv: QGiv provides online fundraising, event registration, and auction software for nonprofits. They overlap with Bolder Events in event registration, ticketing, and auction functionality, serving similar nonprofit and school fundraising customers.
• Givebutter: Givebutter is a fast-growing all-in-one fundraising platform offering auctions, donation forms, and event ticketing for nonprofits. They compete head-on with Bolderbid on auction functionality while expanding into the broader nonprofit software stack Bolder Events services for.
• Auctria: Auctria is an online auction management platform focused on nonprofit and charity silent and live auctions. They compete directly with Bolderbid's core features around bidder management, item cataloging, and checkout.
• Greater Giving: Greater Giving is a long-standing auction and fundraising software provider that Bolder Events actively supports as a third-party platform. They serve identical nonprofit gala and auction customers with similar mobile bidding, registration, and checkout functionality.
• OneCause: OneCause is a direct competitor offering both online/auction fundraising software and event services to nonprofits. They overlap with Bolder Events in mobile bidding, silent auctions, and end-to-end nonprofit event support, targeting the same non-profit and school fundraising buyers.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Bolder Events