Tope Awotona’s Atlanta-based scheduling platform Calendly helps make virtual meetings easier, and because we’re all meeting virtually in the time of the coronavirus pandemic, the market is rewarding him in a major way.
Calendly raised a $350 million investment, which now values the company at more than $3 billion.
The Calendly funding round was led by OpenView Venture Partners, a Boston-based expansion-stage firm and existing investor, with participation from San Fransisco-based Iconiq Capital, Atlanta Business Chronicle reported.
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In 2020, Calendly doubled its subscription revenue to $70 million, according to the announcement. More than 10 million people use the platform each month to streamline the way they schedule meetings, including teams at companies such as Zoom and Twilio.
“Our profitable, unique, product-led growth model has led to Calendly becoming the most used, most integrated, most loved scheduling platforms for individuals and large enterprises alike,” said Awotona.
After immigrating from Nigeria to the U.S. as a teenager and attending college in the U.S., Awotona worked as a door-to-door salesman but planned on becoming a tech entrepreneur, according to NPR.
He launched a series of e-commerce businesses that failed. Then Awotona had an idea that excited him: designing software that would minimize the hassle and headaches of scheduling meetings. In 2013, Awotona cashed in his 401k and went into debt to build Calendly.
Calendly is an example of if you built it, they will come. Awotona’s grind and determination to make it has finally paid off.