How have 2018s tech start-ups successes done so far in 2019?
It’s just over halfway through 2019 and summer is finally in full swing. On the eve of a parliamentary recess, which sees politicians scuttle off for the summer, the world of business never sleeps. The midway point of the year is the perfect opportunity to reflect. We’ve highlight three tech start-ups to keep an eye on for the remainder of 2019.
Slack
Slack dominated the headlines in June 2019 after their Direct Public Offering on Wall Street. The company offers collaboration software targeted at businesses to improve their communication. Five years after its initial release, Slack has over 10 million daily users and offers its services to 65 of the Fortune 100 companies.
After its first trading session the companies share price was up just short of 49%, giving the company a value of £19.7bn. This valuation was a hotly debated topic with many experts pointing out that the company had never made a profit. Regardless, many investors will be focused on Slack’s share price in the second half of 2019.
Deliveroo
London-based food delivery service Deliveroo was started in 2013 and is the brainchild of CEO Will Shu. The service is available in 500 towns and cities, partnered with over 80,000 restaurants and employs 60,000 riders globally. The company is in a shoot-out with the likes of JustEat and UberEats in a fiercely competitive market that’s estimated to be worth as much as £3.78bn in the UK.
Deliveroo claims to have seen revenue growth of over 650% year on year since its launch. Understandably, this drew the attention of Uber, who were rumoured to be interested in acquiring the company.
However, in May 2019 the company announced that it had raised just over £454m, with the largest investment coming from Amazon. This took the company’s estimated value to around £2bn. Deliveroo continues to expand its operations locally by opening in 10 new towns throughout the UK and is on track to create 70,000 jobs in the country’s restaurant sector by 2020.
DAZN
Often referred to as “the Netflix of sports”, DAZN has made waves in the world of sports rights since its launch in August 2016. The company offers over 8,000 sporting events a year, ranging from the Premier League and Formula One, to the NFL and UFC. Despite having its headquarters in London, the service isn’t currently available in the UK, primarily due to Sky and BT’s domination of the market. In May 2018, DAZN recruited John Skipper, the former President of ESPN (“the worldwide leader in sports”), to be its Executive Chairman.
The company expanded to the US, Spain and Italy and focused on building its offering in key markets such as Japan. According to a study by the data analyst Sensor Tower in May 2019, DAZN’s monthly revenue was up to a little over £9m – more than nine times higher than the same time the previous year. As they build relationships with sports leagues across the world over the coming years, could we see DAZN make a run at the UK market?
