A decade ago, no one would have thought that there would be an online design tool such as Canva that would revolutionize the industry and help creators create their designs without spending tons of money on designers or hiring design agencies.
This is the story of Melaine Perkins
A strong woman entrepreneur from Australia whose light shines bright, she has helped micro, small, and medium businesses create their legacy and given creators and social media influencers the power to tell stories visually.
Born in Perth, Western Australia, Melaine Perkins had the destiny written to transform the designing world and make a remarkable tool that would be loved genuinely by millions of people and would help them promote them online and offline. Melanie Perkins, a college dropout, has achieved remarkable success. She enrolled at the University of Western Australia to major in communications, psychology, and commerce.
However, the destiny had something else planned for her. She noticed students’ challenges in learning the design programs and found her calling. She dropped out of the university to pursue Fusion Books with Cliff Obrecht (Co-founder of Canva). They dated for years before tying the knot in 2021 on Rottnest Island.
Her Journey to Success –
Melanie Perkins and her partner, Cliff Obrecht, founded Fusion Books in 2007. This company offered a user-friendly platform for students to design their yearbooks. Starting from humble beginnings in Perkins’ mother’s living room, Fusion Books expanded to Australia’s largest yearbook company, extending operations to France and New Zealand.
Despite facing numerous rejections from local investors in Perth, Perkins remained determined. In 2011, she pitched the initial concept of Canva to renowned investor Bill Tai. Although they didn’t secure funding then, they continued attending gatherings hosted by Tai. A pivotal moment arrived when Perkins met Lars Rasmussen, a co-founder of Google Maps, who became their technical advisor and introduced them to Cameron Adams. Adams joined Canva as the third founder and chief product officer.
It took Melanie Perkins 100+ rejections over 3 years to start Canva and transform the desinging industry completely. During the course, she had numerous futile trips to Silicon Valley for the funding. Every No took Melaine closer to the person who eventaully said ‘yes’ to her dream project.
Under the leadership of this talented trio, Canva emerged as one of the few profitable “unicorn” start-ups. Perkins, who retained a significant stake of around 18%, continued to serve as CEO. Her remarkable achievements led to her inclusion in the Financial Review Rich List of 2023.
In 2022, she was inducted into the 30 Under 30 Hall of Fame – and in 2023, she solidified her position as a billionaire by appearing on Forbes’ Billionaires list.
The best thing that makes Melanie Perkins stand out is her commitment to combating poverty by pledging her 30% stake in Canva for social causes. Possibly, Melanie has breached the “Veil of Maya” and gone one step further to overcome human greed that only increases with money. Her success lies in creating Canva and her life, which inspires people to follow compassion.
Date of Founding – Canva
It was founded on June 18, 2012, but it was officially launched to the public in August 2013. No one in their right mind would’ve thought of Canva becoming a big and strong competitor of Adobe Photoshop and other products. In 2024, Canva will be valued at $40 billion and shows no sign of stopping. Their love and passion for introducing new features and keeping the users hooked on the platform have given them an edge over their competitors.
Like WhatsApp, which gained the edge through its simple UI (User Interface) and UX (User Experience), Canva did something similar. They made the platform so simple yet engaging that many small businesses left the designing agencies and shifted to their platform. Another thing is that they have a free account for starters. The paid accounts have minimal fees but priceless offer value.
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