The term Unicorn comes from the world of venture capital and refers to any new business that has reached a valuation of one billion dollars. We will now look at some of the the Unicorns in Ireland that made it big with their business ideas.
Aileen Lee, the founder of Cowboy Ventures, is credited with being the first person to use the term unicorn. At the time, she was referring to the 39 businesses that had a valuation of over $1 billion. Initially, the word was used to place focus on the uncommon nature of such new ventures. Since that time, the concept of a unicorn start-up has been understood in the same way. On the other hand, there are now more unicorns than before.
It’s well known that Ireland’s government agencies are among the best in the world at helping new businesses get off the ground. In addition to having the third-lowest corporation tax rate in the European Union and the fourth-lowest rate on the list of industrialised countries compiled by the OECD, there is a substantial amount of support for research and development.
Here are the well-known unicorns in Ireland:
The most popular Unicorns in Ireland
Wayflyer
It serves as a revenue-based funding platform for a number of different online retailers. E-commerce businesses are aided in their efforts to grow more quickly and realise their full potential through the provision of capital and information, as well as the breaking down of barriers.
It was launched in 2019 by Aidan Corbett and Jack Pierse to address the greatest and most demanding difficulties faced by the rapidly expanding eCommerce enterprises.
The company was able to secure financing in the amount of $76 million through an equity round, led by some of the most prominent investors in the world. In the process, Wayflyer was able to attain the Irish unicorn status. These investors have previously provided funding for other businesses, such as Stripe, Brex, and Revolut.
Flipdish
The company known as Flipdish provides on-demand food businesses with assistance in the development of branded food ordering solutions, applications, and websites. The company makes it possible for food businesses to accept orders online by providing them with cutting-edge websites and applications that prioritise the business’s identity.
Additionally, it collaborates with a variety of restaurants and takeaways to assist in the development of their brands and the accomplishment of their objectives. Today, this Ireland unicorn company operates on a worldwide scale, serving more than 7000 clients across 25 countries and receiving income from the orders that these clients place that are above valuation.
These clients include some of the most successful and well-known companies in the sector, such as Subway, Base pizza, Bombay Pantry, and Cojean, among others. James McCarthy and Conor McCarthy were the ones that initiated the business in 2015.
LetsGetChecked
Customers can connect their home health testing results to approved laboratory testing through this online platform. Peter Foley established the company in 2015 with the intention of providing his expertise in the fields of healthcare, health diagnostics, medical, and biotechnology.
A wide variety of tests are available to meet the demands of all consumers, and you’ll see results immediately. Get your order the very next day and save yourself a trip to the clinic or the office of your physician.
You will be able to return your specimen on the same day by activating your test, collecting a sample first thing in the morning, and then utilising the prepaid shipping label that will be provided.
Intercom
The customer engagement platform assists its users in expanding their businesses by boosting their levels of engagement and return on investment (ROI) with Intercom. It is equipped with the most advanced chatbot, product tools, proactive messaging, email marketing, and self-service support available in its category.
Throughout the customer journey, it provides experiences and contextual messaging that help you develop stronger relationships with your customers.
BrowserStack
It is a software testing platform based in Ireland that is responsible for powering over two million tests every single day across 15 data centres all around the world. This company is working toward the goal of becoming the testing infrastructure for the internet, and their vision guides their work. BrowserStack is the engine that drives today’s digital economy, enabling developers to produce high-quality, bug-free applications.
In 2011, while Ritesh Arora and Nakul Agarwal were planning to establish a website for their tech consulting business, they conceived the idea for this platform.
It provides the development teams with rapid access to a cloud infrastructure that helps them to thoroughly test their web and mobile applications for efficiency, functionality, and visual appeal so that they may distribute the software more quickly and on a larger scale.
The start-up became an Irish unicorn when it was valued at 4 billion in 2021.
WorkHuman
The tech company that Eric Mosley and Eddie Reynolds established in 1999 has benefited during the coronavirus pandemic as a result of companies seeking to compensate staff for going the additional mile even during the crisis.
The company manages the employee reward and incentive programmes on behalf of some of the largest corporations in the world, including Cisco, GE, LinkedIn, Procter & Gamble, Symantec, and KPMG. Other clients include KPMG and Symantec. Over five million employees are currently registered on the Workhuman platform, which is used in more than 160 countries.
Earlier this year, Workhuman is reported to have become only the second Irish Unicorn after Intercom publicly announce it has achieved unicorn status. This is a moniker given to privately held technology companies that are valued at $1 billion or more.
This move came about as a result of Intermediate Capital Group (ICG) purchasing a 10% stake in the company from shareholders who were exiting for a total of $120 million.
Source Links:
The 5 Unicorn Startups Founded in Ireland
Wayflyer becomes latest Irish tech unicorn after $150m fundraise
