Earlier this week, Australian graphic design startup Canva announced it had raised $60 million in new funding and is planning to open its first U.S. office here in Austin.
Along with that news, Canva announced former WP Engine VP of Global Sales John Eitel is leading its Austin-based sales team as Canva’s VP of sales. We reached out to see what additional details the company might be ready to share, and Eitel responded.
Below is our Q&A, conducted over email, with Eitel.
AI: When and where will Canva open an office in Austin? How many people will be based at the Austin office, and what types of roles will they fill?
Eitel: In light of COVID19, we are mostly working remotely right now, but in the long term, we plan to have an office where we can all work together. We plan to triple our current team of 20 this year, building out our sales and marketing functions for the Enterprise, Education, and Partnerships teams, plus support across Finance, HR and Legal.
AI: Why did Canva select Austin? Does it have any other U.S. offices? Did the company seek government-backed incentives to locate here?
Eitel: Austin is an exciting tech hub that offers a wealth of local talent, while enabling us to support customers across several US time zones. We’re also in great company here, with an array of large enterprises and technology innovators, that offer excellent partnership opportunities.
We’re building a new U.S. home where everyone loves coming to work, and Austin is an exciting setting that will help us achieve this.
AI: How have the ups and downs of the pandemic impacted Canva’s plans in Austin? (Our case counts currently are higher than ever.)
Eitel: Canva has shifted most employees to remote working across the globe, which includes our Austin office, as we help slow the spread of the virus. As a cloud-based design platform, most of our work can be done online, making this transition relatively seamless.
What we’re seeing is that now more than ever people are embracing online collaboration tools for the workplace - in fact, Canva has seen exponential growth in both revenue and active users in recent months, even against the backdrop of a global downturn.
AI: Any other thoughts to add about the Austin expansion and Canva’s future growth?
Eitel: Canva for Enterprise will hold its first major virtual conference on July 29, 2020, to kick-off Canva Elevate 2020 - a virtual event series where experts will discuss the future of brand consistency and design collaboration.
Canva CEO and Co-Founder, Melanie Perkins, will expand on Canva for Enterprise’s plans for the U.S. and beyond, followed by talks from leading marketers from HubSpot, Berkshire Hathaway Home Services and others.
Sessions will take place from 2 p.m. to 5.30 p.m EST, and anyone can register for free here. We recommend the conference for those interested in hearing more about Canva for Enterprise’s strategy, and the latest developments within the wider branding space.
