Starting a SaaS: How Canva Hit 800K Users in Year One

Melanie Perkins spent seven years turning a university side project into one of the fastest-growing design platforms ever built. Starting a SaaS from scratch, she bootstrapped a yearbook tool called Fusion Books, then used those lessons to launch Canva - which hit 800,000 users and 5.5 million designs in its first year.

Melanie reveals how starting a SaaS with blogger outreach created a viral loop, why she spent a full year finding the right technical co-founder, and how Guy Kawasaki joined after a single tweet. This is a SaaS startup guide for anyone launching a SaaS business from zero.

🔑 Key Lessons

• 🚀 Starting a SaaS begins with a painful problem: Canva grew to 800,000 users because design tools were genuinely difficult. Melanie built a product so simple that users naturally told others about it.
• 🎯 Target users who amplify your growth: Canva deliberately targeted bloggers first because they needed to design daily and had large audiences. Each new blogger became an unpaid evangelist.
• 📉 Bootstrap before you fundraise: Melanie spent five years bootstrapping Fusion Books before raising $6 million for Canva. That experience in starting a SaaS from scratch taught her how to start a SaaS the right way.
• 🛠️ Start niche, then go wide: Canva began as Fusion Books serving school yearbooks in Australia. Melanie proved the technology in a narrow, profitable market first, then expanded to mass consumer design.
• 💰 Lower price barriers to unlock new markets: Canva introduced a patented $1 stock image license when competitors charged $10 to $50 per image. This made professional imagery accessible to everyday creators.
• 🧠 Wait for the right team instead of hiring fast: Melanie spent a full year finding technical co-founder Cameron Adams. That patience built a team of 40 in Canva's first year.

Chapters

• Introduction
• Melanie's background and the Canva story
• Favorite success quotes from Seth Godin and Steve Jobs
• Life before Canva and early entrepreneurship
• Starting Fusion Books at university
• How Fusion Books became the blueprint for Canva
• Ownership and growth of Fusion Books
• The decision to build Canva and the San Francisco journey
• From Fusion Books to Canva's broader market
• Targeting bloggers as the first users
• Blogger outreach as the early growth engine
• Lessons from trying hundreds of approaches
• Why Canva raised VC funding after bootstrapping
• Organic community growth and word-of-mouth
• Scaling challenges from 10 to 40 people
• Revenue model and the $1 stock image license
• Building a contributor community of photographers
• How Guy Kawasaki joined Canva
• Future vision and upcoming product launches
• Lightning round
• Final thoughts on persistence and commitment

Resources

• Full show notes: https://saasclub.io/12
• Join 5,000+ SaaS founders: https://saasclub.io/email