Freshworks

Software company
  • Technology
  • Information technology
  • Software development
  • Cloud computing
Founded2010; 14 years ago (2010) in Chennai, India (as Freshdesk)Founders
  • Girish Mathrubootham
  • Shan Krishnasamy
HeadquartersSan Mateo, California, United States
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
  • Girish Mathrubootham (executive chairman)
  • Dennis Woodside (president and CEO)
ProductsCustomer relationship management (CRM) and IT service management (ITSM) toolsServicesOnline office suite, online business management toolsRevenueIncrease US$596 million (2023)Negative increase US$−170 million (2023)
Net income
Negative increase US$−137 million (2023)Total assetsIncrease US$1.46 billion (2023)Total equityIncrease US$1.07 billion (2023)
Number of employees
4,900 (2023)Websitefreshworks.comFootnotes / references
[1]

Freshworks Inc. is a cloud-based software-as-a-service company, founded in 2010 in Chennai, India.[2][3] The company provides cloud-based tools for customer relationship management (CRM), IT service management (ITSM), and e-commerce marketing.

On September 22, 2021, Freshworks became the first Indian SaaS company to be listed on Nasdaq.[4] In its initial public offering, Freshworks raised $1.03 billion[4][5] following earlier funding rounds from venture capital firms such as Accel and Google's venture capital fund, CapitalG.[6][7]

History

Freshworks was founded in 2010 by former Zoho employees Girish Mathrubootham and Shan Krishnasamy in Chennai, India, as Freshdesk.[8][9] The company moved their headquarters to San Mateo, California, in 2018.[4] The company focuses on developing cloud-based customer service software and has undergone multiple rounds of funding from investors such as Accel, Tiger Global Management, and Sequoia Capital.[10]

During its development, Freshworks acquired three other companies, 1CLICK.io, Konotor, and Frilp, in 2015.[11] In 2016, the company launched its second product, Freshsales, a customer relationship management (CRM) software.[12]

In 2017, Freshdesk officially changed its name to Freshworks Inc. This change was part of their strategy to become a multi-product company and avoid limiting their brand to just helpdesk solutions.[13] In 2018, the company achieved annual recurring revenue of over $100 million and launched a product suite called Freshworks 360.[14] In 2020 Zoho accused Freshworks of stealing Zoho's intellectual property, and the lawsuit was settled in 2021.[15]

The company's annual recurring revenue was reported as over $200 million in 2020, over $300 million in 2021, and $400 million in 2022.[16] In 2023, Freshworks set a goal of $1 billion total revenue by 2026.[17]

Freshworks disclosed that it acquired Device42, an American IT-management firm, for $230 million in May 2024. Also in May, Mathrubootham transitioned to the role of executive chairman, with Dennis Woodside succeeding him as CEO.[18][19]

References

  1. ^ "2023 Annual Report (Form 10-K)". U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. February 16, 2024.
  2. ^ "Salesforce rival Freshworks aims for nearly $9 bln valuation in U.S. IPO". Reuters. September 13, 2021. 13 September 2021. Retrieved 2023-02-13.
  3. ^ RAJIV SINGH. "Accel India: Decoding Founders' Mentality To Spin Success". Forbes India. Jan 18, 2021. Retrieved 2023-02-13.
  4. ^ a b c Anu Raghunathan (September 24, 2021). "Nasdaq Listing Of Freshworks Creates Windfall For Indian Founder And Hundreds Of Employees". Forbes.com. Retrieved September 25, 2021.
  5. ^ "Freshworks will make good on its IPO success with an Olympics-style work ethos". Yahoo! Finance. September 23, 2021. Retrieved September 25, 2021.
  6. ^ "Salesforce rival Freshworks aims for nearly $9 bln valuation in U.S. IPO". Reuters. September 13, 2021. Retrieved September 25, 2021.
  7. ^ "Accel India: Decoding Founders' Mentality To Spin Success". Forbes India. Retrieved 2021-02-07.
  8. ^ Arakali, Harichandran (March 11, 2021). "Girish Mathrubootham's billion-dollar dream for Freshworks". Forbes India.
  9. ^ "Freshworks IPO: More than 500 employees become crorepatis". The Indian Express. September 23, 2021.
  10. ^ Nishant, Niket (22 September 2021). "Freshworks' share price surges 21% over IPO, market cap at $12.2 billion". Economic Times. Sep 22, 2021, 11:35 PM. Retrieved 2023-04-12.
  11. ^ SNEHA BANERJEE (18 October 2016). "Freshdesk's 6th acquisition is an AI-based Chatbot Platform". Entrepreneur. OCT 18, 2016. Retrieved 2023-04-12.
  12. ^ Suparna Dutt DCunha (2 June 2021). "Company Close-up: A Fresh Start To Customer Engagement". Martechvibe. June 2, 2021. Retrieved 2023-04-12.
  13. ^ "The Freshworks Story - Why we rebranded our company". Thoughts on Refreshing Business Software. 2017-06-06. Retrieved 2024-01-09.
  14. ^ Aparajitha Nair. "Freshworks' Journey From A Single Product To Taking On The SaaS Giants". dutchuncles. May 17, 2021. Retrieved 2023-04-12.
  15. ^ Aparajitha Nair. "Rapprochement. Freshworks and Zoho reach settlement to end litigation". hindubusiness. December 24, 2021. Retrieved 2024-05-23.
  16. ^ Gauri (30 August 2021). "IPO time: Innovative company Freshworks files for USD 100 million IPO". Inventiva. August 30, 2021. Retrieved 2023-04-12.
  17. ^ DeFrancesco, Robert. "Freshworks Looks To Gain Market Share In IT Service Management". Forbes. Retrieved 2024-01-09.
  18. ^ Singh, Manish (May 2, 2024). "Freshworks acquires Device42 for $230M, appoints Dennis Woodside as new CEO". TechCrunch.
  19. ^ "Freshworks names Dennis Woodside as CEO, shares tumble". Reuters. May 1, 2024.