Irish online advertising software company StitcherAds is to create 40 new jobs and potentially more in the near future as it looks to grow revenues from €10 million to €30 million.
The company, formerly Betapond, is a marketing platform that helps advertisers publish paid ads that drive sales via Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and Snapchat, while also providing useful analytics. Its customers include Wayfair, Calvin Klein, and Bed Bath and Beyond.
Found in 2009 in Waterford by Declan Kennedy, Conor Ryan and Peter Elger, StitcherAds has seen significant growth during the pandemic. The company, which derives 80 per cent of its revenues in North America, has been growing 50 per cent year-on-year with its headcount having doubled to 100 people in the past nine months.
Speaking to The Irish Times, Mr Kennedy, the company’s chief executive, said business was booming as retailers in particular step up advertising on social.
‘When Covid hit’
“What we do is mission critical for these guys as it drives a lot of revenues for them. In particular when Covid hit and retailers had to close their physical stores they obviously looked to push sales via the internet instead with some customer having gone from generating 10 per cent of sales online to 30 per cent and with an eagerness to increase this further,” he said.
“We probably have more ad spend under management out of Waterford than the sum of all the rest of the ad agencies in Ireland at about €500 million,” Mr Kennedy added.
StitcherAds previously raised €1.5 million in venture debt from Columbia Lake Partners, a British venture fund, and has also secured about €4.5 million in venture capital from backers that include Delta Partners in Dublin.
“We had earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (ebitda) of €2 million last year and we’re currently funding this year’s growth from our cash balances,” Mr Kennedy said.
"Obviously generating sales is the key reason for retailers to partner with us but they are also having to get a lot smarter in order to compete with the likes of Amazon and so being able to analyse customer data is also increasingly important to them."
