Page 72 - Forbes - USA (December 2019)

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M → On a steamy May morning in 2013, Canva CEO
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E Melanie Perkins found herself adrift on a kiteboard

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R in the channel between billionaire Richard
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Branson’s private Necker and Moskito islands.
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Her 30-foot sail floating deflated and useless be- egant restaurant menus. Besides an impossible-

side her in the strong eastern Caribbean current, to-beat price (millions of users pay nothing at
the 26-year-old entrepreneur waited for hours all), Canva’s key advantage over rival products
to be rescued. As she treaded water, her left leg from tech giants like Adobe has been its ease of
scarred by a past collision with a coral reef, she use. Before Canva, amateurs had to stitch togeth-
reminded herself that her dangerous new hobby er designs in Microsoft Word or pay through the
was worth it. After all, it was key to the fundrais- nose for confusing professional tools. Today, any-
ing strategy for the design-software startup she’d one, anywhere, can download Canva and be cre-
cofounded with her boyfriend six years before. ating within ten minutes.
Canva was based in Australia, thousands of The company’s revenue comes from upselling
miles from tech’s Silicon Valley power corridor. to a $10-a-month premium version with snazzier
Getting a meeting—much less funding—was features or, more recently, from sales of a stream-
proving tough. Perkins heard “no” from more lined corporate account option. High-quali-
than 100 investors. So when she met the orga- ty stock photos—of which Canva has millions—
nizer of a group of kitesurfing venture capitalists cost another $1. It adds up. This year the com-

at a pitch competition in her native Perth, Per- pany expects to more than double its revenue to
kins got to training. The next time the group met $200 million; its most recent $85 million funding
to hear startup pitches and potentially write cru- round valued it at $3.2 billion. Perkins, an alum of
cial early-stage funding checks, she’d have a seat the 2016 Forbes 30 Under 30 Asia list, has an es-
at the table—even if it meant having to brave timated 15% stake, valued at $430 million. Throw

treacherous waters. “It was like, risk: serious in her 34-year-old cofounder—and now fiancé—

damage; reward: start company,” Perkins says. “If Cliff Obrecht’s similar stake, and the Aussie power
you get your foot in the door just a tiny bit, you couple are likely worth more than $800 million.
have to kind of wedge it all the way in.” In an era of billion-dollar checks from Soft-
Such perseverance has long been a necessity Bank and high-profile profligacy at WeWork,

at Canva, which began as a modest yearbook-de- Perkins and Obrecht do things differently. They
sign business in the state capital of Perth on Aus- are couch surfers who prefer budget trips to pri-
tralia’s west coast. From those remote origins, vate jets. (This summer, with Canva already val-
Canva has grown into a global juggernaut. Twen- ued at more than $2 billion, Obrecht proposed
ty-million-plus users from 190 countries use the to Perkins in Turkey’s backpacker-friendly Cap-
company’s “freemium” Web-based app to design padocia region with a $30 engagement ring.)
everything from splashy Pinterest graphics to el- Rarest of all: Canva says it’s been profitable—at

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