{"id":43827,"date":"2023-10-20T15:31:27","date_gmt":"2023-10-20T15:31:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/startupsmart.test\/2023\/10\/20\/redbubble-successfully-completes-288-million-ipo-founder-martin-hosking-on-what-comes-next-for-the-startup-giant-startupsmart\/"},"modified":"2023-10-20T15:31:27","modified_gmt":"2023-10-20T15:31:27","slug":"redbubble-successfully-completes-288-million-ipo-founder-martin-hosking-on-what-comes-next-for-the-startup-giant-startupsmart","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.startupsmart.com.au\/uncategorized\/redbubble-successfully-completes-288-million-ipo-founder-martin-hosking-on-what-comes-next-for-the-startup-giant-startupsmart\/","title":{"rendered":"Redbubble successfully completes $288 million IPO: Founder Martin Hosking on what comes next for the startup giant – StartupSmart"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Redbubble<\/div>\n

Melbourne startup Redbubble has successfully completed a $40 million IPO and is now valued at $288 million, proving that a giant consumer tech company can be built from Australia, founder Martin Hosking says.<\/p>\n

The creative marketplace platform for artist closed 9% up after its first day as a public company, with its offer price jumping from $1.33 to $1.46 at the close of trading.<\/p>\n

Through the IPO<\/a>, Redbubble raised $30 million with the sale of new shares and a further $9.8 million from offering shares owned by existing investors.<\/p>\n

A step in the journey<\/h3>\n

Redbubble founder and CEO Martin Hosking rang the ASX bell on Monday morning and says the IPO is an important step in the startup\u2019s journey.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve been around for 10 years and this is another milestone that we\u2019re passing on the way – it\u2019s good to get into the next phase for the company,\u201d Hosking tells StartupSmart<\/em>.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s the end of an awful lot of work for us.\u201d<\/p>\n

While other Aussie tech giants such as Atlasssian have looked overseas for an IPO, Hosking says Redbubble\u2019s successful local listing proves it\u2019s possible to build a large tech company from Australia.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt proves that an Australian tech company with global ambitions can be listed on the ASX and can be perceived well,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cPersonally it\u2019s very satisfying on a number of fronts. It\u2019s very satisfying that the company has got to this stage and that the early investors have liquidity in their shares.<\/p>\n

“And it\u2019s very satisfying that I had 11 of our early employees with me that are still working with me, and it was satisfying for me from the perspective of being in Australia.\u201d<\/p>\n

He says that while all options were considered, the company picked Australia nearly 18 months ago.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt would have been irresponsible not to have considered anywhere else,\u201d Hosking says.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut when we weighed up the alternatives against an ASX-listing it clearly became the optimal outcome for shareholders.\u201d<\/p>\n

Global ambitions<\/h3>\n

Hosking says the time was right for Redbubble to go public, and now it\u2019s about pursuing the company\u2019s lofty global ambitions.<\/p>\n

\u201cRight now we\u2019re the largest global consumer tech company listed on the ASX,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a country we haven\u2019t had a lot of success with consumer-facing tech companies so now it\u2019s about continuing to seize the opportunity before us on a global basis and continuing to improve on the dynamics of the marketplace.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have an ambition to create a truly substantial global consumer tech company out of Australia. That\u2019s where our aspirations lie.<\/p>\n

“We want to be a leader in this space and to set a path that others can follow.\u201d<\/p>\n

Redbubble closed a $12 million pre-IPO round<\/a> led by Blackbird Ventures to give the company \u201cflexibility\u201d during the listing process, following a $15.5 million funding round last year.<\/p>\n

The Melbourne-based tech company now has 158 employees and facilitated $80.6 million worth of transactions in the last half year, with 1.25 million purchases made through the site.<\/p>\n

Laying the groundwork<\/h3>\n

Despite being prepared for a long haul, Hosking says it was still surprising how much work was involved with the public listing, and advises other young startups to lay the groundwork early on.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a company we had already put in place good governance, but the level of work above that was high,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think the IPO would have been possible if we hadn\u2019t done all that pre-work.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s good for companies to continue to improve on their governance structures and continue to recognise that it\u2019s important.<\/p>\n

“In the early days you\u2019ll have an enormous degree of variability and that\u2019s absolutely fine, but you still need to be thinking about it.\u201d<\/p>\n

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

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