Subversive

How International Expansion and Canva for Teams Propelled Canva’s Growth

Feb 20, 2025

Zain Abiddin, a seasoned global product builder and leader with over 15 years of experience, shares his insights on Canva's spectacular growth. He discusses how Canva expanded internationally, adapting localized pricing and payment methods to penetrate new markets. The launch of Canva for Teams played a pivotal role in boosting revenue and enhancing user collaboration. Zain also highlights strategies to combat involuntary churn, emphasizing the critical role of data analysis and A-B testing in refining pricing strategies and user retention.

42:47

Episode guests

Zain Abiddin

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Quick takeaways

Canva's impressive growth from $6 billion to $49 billion was driven by international expansion and the successful launch of Canva for Teams.

Addressing involuntary churn through tailored payment methods and effective communication strategies significantly enhances customer retention and revenue opportunities.

Deep dives

Importance of International Expansion

International expansion is crucial for companies looking to tap into emerging markets like Latin America and parts of Asia. Tailoring products to meet local needs, including pricing and payment methods, facilitates growth in these regions where user demand is increasing. Specific countries, such as Brazil, demonstrated rapid user adoption, prompting a strategic focus on those areas. Successful expansion requires an understanding of local behaviors and preferences, leading to better user engagement and satisfaction.

Intro

2min

Navigating Global Subscription Growth

9min

Optimizing Pricing Strategies Through A-B Testing

7min

Strategic Pricing and Customization in User Retention

2min

Understanding Involuntary Churn

6min

Strategic Decisions and the Launch of Canva for Teams

3min

Canva's Evolution: From Prosumers to Teams

13min

Zain Abiddin is a global product builder and leader with 15+ years of experience. He joined Canva in 2020 as the company’s first subscriptions PM and spent four years helping to scale Canva to billions of dollars in ARR, including the launch of Canva for Teams as well as tools to support localized pricing, price migration, and involuntary churn management. Prior to Canva, Zain ran several startups before transitioning into a career in product management. Zain is now the founder and CEO of Hewwi, a startup dedicated to helping people boost their health, wealth, and wisdom. He has travelled to 30+ countries and worked in APAC, EMEA, and North American markets.

Key Takeaways:

In the last five years, Canva’s valuation has soared from $6 billion to $49 billion, fueled by international expansion and the launch of Canva for Teams.
Expanding internationally has required Canva to support local currencies, adjust prices to align with local willingness to pay, and integrate alternative payments methods (APMs) for specific regions.
Canva has also made significant investments in dunning and other techniques to minimize involuntary churn, which happens when users lose access to subscriptions due to failed payment methods or insufficient funds.
More recently, the company launched Canva for Teams, which has accelerated revenue growth by unlocking larger accounts while also boosting virality given the natural network effects that exist between teams of knowledge workers.
Going broad through international expansion helped Canva get past its first $1B in ARR, then going deeper with the launch of Canva for teams helped the company get from $1B to $2B in ARR, and now the company is increasingly expanding into enterprise accounts to grow ARR even further.

Zain Abiddin: