Raleigh’s Pendo just raised $150M at a valuation of $2.6B—and from where we sit, that’s not even the real headline. For the first time publicly (as far as I know), Pendo CEO Todd Olson is saying those three magic letters: I-P-O. Todd tells the N&O that Pendo is targeting the second half of 2022 for a potential IPO. As we’ve often discussed, that could have a positive trickle-down effect on the Triangle tech scene as the founders, early employees and local investors cash in while Pendo itself remains in-place and continues to grow locally as an independent company. Todd portrays the current fundraise, which apparently is a Series F (!!!) and was led by California-based B Capital Group, as essentially a final topping-off of the funding tank before an IPO.
Pendo, which helps developers build better software products by providing data on how customers use their applications, also announced that it has crossed the $100M mark in ARR (annual recurring revenue). The company has raised $356M since it was founded in 2013. Here’s plenty more on the Pendo news from the N&O, Bloomberg, TechWire and Pendo itself.
The Download
The Download is back with a bang after a short summer break with a Q&A featuring James Avery, the CEO of Kevel. You’ll surely recall that Kevel used to be Adzerk before raising an $11M Series A and rebranding late last year to signal its expanded goal of providing APIs and other tools to help customers build their own custom ad platforms. James’ Q&A is also a virtual walking tour of some of Durham’s finest eateries and drink-eries, including a pro tip on eating lunch at Luna if you’re pressed for time. (You’re welcome.) Read the full Q&A here.
Sports & Food
Sports and food are two of my favorite things, and I’m not even sure I could come up with a bronze medalist. Thus I was excited to read our story today on Eats2Seats, a startup led by 2021 UNC grad Mary Laci Motley that helps nonprofits raise money via working the concession stands at major college sporting events. Eats2Seats is participating in the summer cohort of the Launch Chapel Hill accelerator, and is certainly looking forward to the expected full crowds at UNC and NC State football games that it staffs this fall. Read our full story on Eats2Seats here.
Shine A Light
TechWire’s “LimeLight” feature recognizes two Triangle-based startups today. The first is Durham’s Avaya, which was recently named a “Major Player” in the 2021 IDC MarketScape report for the worldwide CPaaS (Communications Platform as a Service) market. Next, Raleigh-based Reveal Mobile had its VISIT Local geofencing platform named Product of the Year in the 2021 Sales and Marketing Technology Awards program, which is known as The Sammys. Fun facts: Reveal Mobile CEO Brian Handly has been a Download subject, a Pete Meets... guest and a GrepBeat Monday Morsel video subject answering the question: “What’s been the most satisfying moment running your business?”
Local Growth
Last Friday’s TBJ ran a story on Kitware, a New York-based software company with a sizable presence in Carrboro that is growing fast thanks to its emphasis on AI. While it’s more of a project-based company rather than a SaaS, the Carrboro office has grown steadily since its opening in 2005, increasing from 33 employees in 2016 to 41 in 2018 to 48 currently. That’s more than 20% of Kitware’s 220 total employees across its six offices.
VC vs. Main Street
The UNC-affiliated Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise has issued a new report titled Venture-backed vs. Main Street: A Widening Business Gap. The headline: VC-backed startups have held up much better during the pandemic than Main Street businesses, especially those owned by women and minorities. The report also digs deeper into some seemingly positive news—such as the significant increase in new business formation—for seedy underbellies (an increasing percentage of those new enterprises were formed out of necessity rather than opportunity). Read the full report here.
Updates Galore
Here are a few updates on startups that we’ve mentioned in recent newsletters: 1) Last Thursday we mentioned Raleigh-based college admissions engagement platform Element451 doubling its customer base; TechWire has some more info. 2) Last Tuesday we discussed Durham’s The Climate Service raising $500K; now TechWire has a story on the startup’s new report on the climate risks that face businesses (hint: they’re big). 3) On July 15 we talked about the acquisition of Malartu by Raleigh’s Fort Capital Resources. Yesterday’s TBJ has more behind-the-scenes details.
Legen... dary
Yesterday’s TechWire included a feature story on “Tech Legend” Fred Hutchison, the co-founder of the startup-focused law firm that bears his name. You’ll recall that Hutchison (the firm) recently celebrated its 25th anniversary. While we enjoyed the TechWire story, we’re a little surprised that it didn’t mention that GrepBeat held its last happy hour (which Hutchison sponsored) on Fred’s 72nd birthday—June 10. Spoiler alert: the next GrepBeat Happy Hour will be Thursday, Aug. 12 at Durham’s Bull McCabe’s, sponsored by Dualboot Partners. More info coming soon!
Bottled Up
If you’re looking for coworking space, you can always play it safe and glom on to a big chain like WeWork. And hey, they’re perfectly nice. But if you’re looking for something more local, gritty and—dare we say it—cool, then the soon-to-open Durham Bottling Company may be for you. Smashing Boxes CEO Nick Jordan bought the space at 506 Ramseur Street a few years back as a new company HQ but always had grander plans for the 16,000+ square feet. Enter Durham Bottling Company (DBC), which might sound like a new nightlife concept but is in fact a coworking and event space with a stated mission to create a more inclusive and diverse community. DBC offers all the usual amenities you’d expect (free coffee, hot desks, private offices, etc.) but also has a sister nonprofit entity that will help stage a monthly event series. You can get on the waitlist here.
