Melanie Perkins

CEO & Co-founder, Canva
Greater Sydney Area,Australia
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Who Is Melanie Perkins?

Total Experience33 years
CompanyCanva
CountryAustralia

Melanie Perkins is an Australian technology entrepreneur and the co-founder and CEO of Canva, a user-friendly online graphic design platform. Driven by a vision to make design accessible to everyone, she launched her first company, Fusion Books, at age 19 to help students design yearbooks. This early venture was the precursor to Canva, which she co-founded in 2013 with Cliff Obrecht and Cameron Adams. Under her leadership, Canva has grown into a global powerhouse with over 170 million monthly active users, revolutionizing the design industry. Perkins is also a prominent philanthropist, having committed the vast majority of her and her husband's equity to social causes through the Canva Foundation as part of their 'Two-Step Plan' to do the most good in the world.

How Did Melanie Perkins's Career Path Shape Their Journey?

Melanie Perkins's work history includes a series of influential roles in various companies. Here is a detailed list of his professional journey:

Canva - CEO & Co-founder(2012 to Present)
Fusion Books - Founder and Director(2007 to Present)
The University of Western Australia - Multimedia Centre Technical Assistant and Tutor(2006 to 2007)
Weber Shandwick - Public Relations Internship(2007 to 2007)

What Are Melanie Perkins's Key Achievements?

Co-founder & CEO of Canva

Co-founded the intuitive graphic design platform Canva in 2013. She has scaled the company to a multi-billion dollar valuation, empowering millions of non-designers across the globe to create professional-quality visuals.

Building a Tech 'Decacorn'

Led Canva to achieve a valuation of over $26 billion, making it one of the world's most valuable private software companies and establishing her as one of the youngest female founders of a tech unicorn.

The 'Two-Step Plan' for Philanthropy

Alongside her co-founder and husband Cliff Obrecht, she has pledged to donate the vast majority of their wealth to charitable causes. This plan involves building a valuable company (Step 1) and using the proceeds to create a better world (Step 2).

Early Entrepreneurial Success

At the age of 19, she founded Fusion Books, an online platform for designing school yearbooks. This venture served as a proof-of-concept for a simplified, collaborative design tool, laying the foundation for Canva.

What's Melanie Perkins's Educational Background?

Innovation Excellence Program (Commercializing Innovation)

University of Western Australia - Year 2009

BA(Arts)/BA(Commerce), Communications, Pyschology, Marketing and Management

The University of Western Australia - Year 2005

Buying Intent Signals for Melanie Perkins

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Notable news
Hiring actively
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Company Overview

Canva
Total employees4000
HeadquartersSydney
Founded2013

Canva is an online visual communication platform with a mission to empower everyone in the world to design anything and publish anywhere. It offers a user-friendly, drag-and-drop interface with a vast library of templates, stock photography, illustrations, and fonts. Users can create a wide range of visual content, including social media graphics, presentations, posters, videos, and documents, making professional design accessible to non-designers and professionals alike.

Canva Funding Information
Unknown - Total Funding Raised
$200M - Most recent funding amount
16 - Number of funding rounds
14 Sep, 2021 - Latest funding round
Lead Investors:
Sequoia Capital
Blackbird Ventures
T. Rowe Price
Bessemer Venture Partners
Felicis Ventures
Franklin Templeton Investments
Bond
Dragoneer Investment Group

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