Growlr

Growlr was a location-based dating and social app made for the Bear community, a gay male subculture that celebrates larger, hairier men and the people who admire them. Created by Coley Cummiskey and launched in 2010, it billed itself as one of the first bear-focused dating apps and offered community features such as chat, event listings, and news alongside profiles. It grew to hundreds of thousands of daily users worldwide. In 2019 it was sold to The Meet Group, a company known for mainstream social and dating apps, for about $11.8 million. The app was later discontinued, but it remains a notable early example of a dedicated space for bear culture online.