{"id":41242,"date":"2023-10-20T15:12:37","date_gmt":"2023-10-20T15:12:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/startupsmart.test\/2023\/10\/20\/melbourne-startup-livehire-successfully-completes-40-million-ipo-and-hits-back-at-the-critics-startupsmart\/"},"modified":"2023-10-20T15:12:37","modified_gmt":"2023-10-20T15:12:37","slug":"melbourne-startup-livehire-successfully-completes-40-million-ipo-and-hits-back-at-the-critics-startupsmart","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/uncategorized\/melbourne-startup-livehire-successfully-completes-40-million-ipo-and-hits-back-at-the-critics-startupsmart\/","title":{"rendered":"Melbourne startup LiveHire successfully completes $40 million IPO and hits back at the critics – StartupSmart"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"LiveHire<\/div>\n

Melbourne HR tech startup LiveHire has commenced trading on the ASX after successfully raising $10 million through an IPO that valued the company at $40 million.<\/p>\n

The cloud-based human resources productivity platform for recruitment began listing on Friday morning after issuing 50 million new shares at 20 cents per share.<\/a><\/p>\n

But co-founder Michael Haywood won’t be constantly checking his company\u2019s share price on the day \u2013 he’ll be too busy getting married.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll be walking down the aisle whilst fielding broker calls,\u201d Haywood tells StartupSmart<\/em> the night before the listing.<\/p>\n

But fellow co-founder Antonluigi Gozzi says it\u2019s a company-wide rule to not check how the startup is faring in the public market.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have a rule that people in the business can\u2019t talk about the share price,\u201d Gozzi tells StartupSmart<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s an outcome for what we do, not an input. We understand that markets go up and down; industries go in and out of favour.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat will change over time quicker than the business. We\u2019ve always said we will steer a true course. We\u2019re here to build a global tech company.\u201d<\/p>\n

Despite the big milestone, Haywood says nothing will change internally.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve got a fixed rule that it\u2019s business as usual,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cStock prices will change daily but our business strategy doesn\u2019t change. It\u2019s business as usual.\u201d<\/p>\n

Surrounded by controversy<\/h3>\n

The five-year old startup\u2019s IPO comes amid much debate surrounding early-stage tech companies using the ASX as a funding route despite having low revenue.<\/p>\n

The ASX is currently considering proposals to shut out many of these startups by raising the financial thresholds<\/a> to list in order to maintain the \u201cquality and integrity\u201d of the market.<\/p>\n

According to its prospectus, LiveHire had revenue of $135,570 for the year ending December 31, 2015, and a net loss during this time of more than $2.1 million.<\/p>\n

But after completing four private funding rounds, Haywood says the time was right to take the company public, despite the low revenue.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor us it\u2019s about scaling right now,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cRevenue is incredibly important for tech companies, you need to know how you monetise and that you have clients that see value in your product.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe main part is that you can scale and need access to a quantum of funds that\u2019ll give you the assurance that you can scale with really good traction.\u201d<\/p>\n

The founder says he supports the ASX\u2019s recent proposals, saying that it would be a \u201cvery good thing\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s very important to go through that private phase and not look to list too early,\u201d Haywood says.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve seen a change in guard \u2013 now ASIC is being very diligent and tightening the reins on companies getting into the public market. That level of scrutiny is only going to further enhance the brand and reputation of the ASX.\u201d<\/p>\n

Haywood says startups should rely on private funding until they have proven product-market fit, something he says LiveHire has achieved.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor companies looking to come through, make sure you spend time in the private sector and successfully complete a minimum of three funding rounds,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cReally find the time to make sure you have very good product-market fit and are in a good scaling phase because once you hit those open screens, it\u2019s foot down and accelerate time.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou can\u2019t be trying to find your fuel when you\u2019re in that open environment.\u201d<\/p>\n

While critics says young tech companies going public with little revenue could tarnish the market as a whole<\/a>, Gozzi points to Xero as an example of a startup that completed an IPO very early on, to great effect.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey listed much earlier than we did, in year one \u2013 we\u2019re in year five,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s definitely a viable option for a company that\u2019s scaling, not for a company that\u2019s forming.<\/p>\n

LiveHire did consider closing another round of private funding, but the team decided that it was time to take the startup public.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re always looking to A\/B test and look at the positives and negatives when at a fork in the road,\u201d Haywood says.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe private funding round for us was not the best option in terms of being able to scale the business as fast as we needed to.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe reached a fork in the road and weighed up the pros and cons and decided that the public environment was the ideal fit for us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Despite the recent popularity surrounding backdoor listings, Gozzi says this was never considered, and now it\u2019s up to the market to decide whether it\u2019s worth investing in LiveHire.<\/p>\n

\u201cLiveHire deliberately from day one never intended to do a backdoor listing,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a natural step for the organisation, just like it was for Xero. It\u2019s one step of many for us in the future and we\u2019re very proud to engage with the broader investment community in Australia.<\/p>\n

\u201cAll investors in Australia who want to participate in an Australian tech company now can make up their mind if they want to participate.\u201d<\/p>\n

The plan from day one<\/h3>\n

Gozzi says an IPO was always the plan from day one, and has been in the works for more than a year.<\/p>\n

\u201cBuilding a great tech company requires an incredible amount of work,\u201d Gozzi says.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe IPO process is about testing the business for resilience and testing that the ship has been built with a strong vision.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor us it was a long plan \u2013 it started a year ago with an internal initiative. We had a whole team dedicated to making sure the company was mature, commercial and strong enough to be performing well in the listed life.\u201d<\/p>\n

The cash injection from the IPO will be used to accelerate LiveHire\u2019s growth strategy in Australia and look to expand internationally, as well as developing sales and business development capabilities and investing in the company\u2019s technology.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a business idea with huge potential,\u201d Gozzi says.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not a matter of if, it\u2019s a matter of who and when this will be done globally. That\u2019s why we\u2019re doing it and why there\u2019s lots of positivity and momentum around the business.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe business is kicking goals, we\u2019ve got very positive traction and we\u2019re using this as an opportunity to educate investors about the business.\u201d<\/p>\n

Follow StartupSmart on<\/em> Facebook,<\/em> Twitter,<\/em> LinkedIn<\/em> and<\/em> Soundcloud.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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