How Melanie Perkins Turned Canva into a $50B Empire—and What High-Level Women Entrepreneurs Can Learn
- Midori Verity
- May 14
- 3 min read
You’ve used Canva. Your team uses Canva. Your mom probably uses Canva.
But what you might not know is this: the woman behind it, Melanie Perkins, was turned down over 100 times by investors. Today, she’s running a company valued at nearly $50 billion with over 200 million monthly active users and growing.
So what happened between all those "no's" and Canva becoming one of the world’s most recognized platforms?
Here’s the truth – It wasn’t luck. It was strategy.
And the way Melanie built Canva? It holds some seriously tactical lessons for women who are scaling — and tired of spinning in circles trying to hit that next level.
From Yearbook Startup to $50B Powerhouse
Melanie Perkins didn’t start with Silicon Valley connections or a Stanford degree. She was a 19-year-old from Perth, teaching design at her university and wondering: why is this so complicated?
That curiosity turned into Fusion Books, a DIY yearbook tool she built with her boyfriend (now Canva co-founder). It was niche, yes — but it worked. And it validated her belief that design should be intuitive, not intimidating.
From there, she set her sights higher. She pitched the idea of Canva: a platform that could replace clunky design software and empower anyone to create beautiful graphics, fast.
Rejection after rejection followed — until she finally found a few investors who didn’t just see her product… they saw her clarity, conviction, and long game.
Today, Canva is:
Used in 190+ countries
Serving teams from Salesforce to Zoom
Rolling out AI design tools and enterprise solutions
Generating over $2 billion in annualized revenue
Run by a CEO who has pledged to give away the majority of her wealth to global causes
(Source: Forbes, Access IPOs)
Strategy Takeaways for Women Founders Who Are Ready to Play Bigger
This isn’t a “rags to riches” fantasy. It’s a blueprint. Here’s what founders at the $500K–$5M level can actually do to lead like Melanie — and scale like Canva.
1. Simplify the experience. Ruthlessly. Canva looks easy. It’s not. It’s a deeply sophisticated product engineered to feel effortless.Your move: What are you overcomplicating? Strip it down. Make your user feel like a genius.
2. Get obsessive about user psychology. Melanie knew: people don’t want design software. They want to feel capable and creative.Your move: Sell the emotion, not just the transformation. That’s what keeps them coming back.
3. Build an unapologetically big vision — and sell it early. Before Canva scaled, Melanie pitched a $100B vision. She believed it before it existed.Your move: If your vision doesn’t scare you (or challenge others), it’s not big enough.
4. Scale your company and your leadership maturity. She evolved fast — from founder to CEO, hiring leaders better than her in key roles.Your move: If your business is stuck, check your operating level. Are you leading like a $10M CEO?
5. Lead with product obsession, not ego. Melanie doesn’t chase headlines. She chases innovation.Your move: Stay heads-down and build something so good, people can’t help but talk about it.
Ready to Work Smarter, Scale Faster?
If you’ve got the fire but want a better game plan — this is your moment.
I built PowerSprints to give high-level women entrepreneurs 21 days of focused strategy, momentum, and decision-making that leads to real results.
Because the difference between where you are and where you want to be?
It’s not luck. It’s strategy.And now it’s your move.
Cheers, Midori Verity!
Founder & CEO, Fuel to Fire
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