As if anyone needed further proof that social media is big business, Sprout Social’s Justyn Howard just bought a $20 million Malibu compound. The Chicago-based founder and CEO of the platform made his fortune in social media management, according to Variety, transforming a 2010 start-up into a $1.9 billion company that went public late last year and doubled its stock price since then.
Howard and his longtime wife, Elizabeth, recently paid $16.1 million for a newly built Malibu cliff-top mansion in addition to $4 million for an adjacent vacant parcel, for a total outlay of just under $20 million. The two properties combined a total 12.8 acres of hillside land.
The ultra-contemporary mansion has a long gated driveway that zig-zags up the mountain, drought-tolerant native plant landscaping and nearly 10,000 square feet of living space. The ocean view house appears to be in the vicinity of Encinal and Decker Canyon roads.