Canva: From a "Terrible" Pitch Deck to a Unicorn

Ever wondered what the first pitch deck of a billion-dollar company looks like? Canva co-founder Melanie Perkins shared their journey from a "pretty terrible" pitch to impressing investors and becoming a unicorn.

Back in 2008, Canva's first pitch deck was far from perfect. Melanie Perkins, one of the co-founders, knew nothing about standard startup pitch decks. Their initial deck even had a quirky name, "Canvas Chef," meant to convey the idea of providing high-quality ingredients for users to create with.

Through numerous iterations and improvements, they finally crafted a pitch deck that caught investors' attention. Each interaction with investors led to tweaks that preemptively answered tough questions. They added slides to explain the design industry market, addressed market opportunity concerns, and highlighted Canva's unique advantages over competitors.

Eventually, Canva secured investor support and grew into a billion-dollar unicorn. This journey highlights the importance of persistence and continuous improvement in achieving startup success.

(Credit: Smart Company)