Canva: Designing A Revolution
The blue light from a computer screen lights up MELANIE PERKINS’ face in her University of Western Australia dorm room. At 19, she watches students struggle with complicated design software during her tutorial session.
STUDENT 1
“I’ve been trying to move this text box for twenty minutes!”
STUDENT 2
“Why do I need to click through so many menus just to change a color?”
MELANIE sighs and shows them the complex steps needed.
MELANIE
(to herself)
“There has to be a better way.”
That night, unable to sleep, MELANIE sits up in bed. She opens her notebook and starts drawing a simple design interface that anyone could use easily.
MELANIE (Voice Over)
“What if anyone could create beautiful designs without years of training? What if design could be for everyone?”
By 2008, MELANIE and her business partner CLIFF OBRECHT have turned her mom’s living room into their office. Empty pizza boxes and coffee cups are everywhere as they work on their laptops.
CLIFF
(looking at their bank account)
“We’ve got about three weeks before we run out of money.”
MELANIE
(still typing)
“Then we have three weeks to make this work.”
On the screen is their first website: “FUSION BOOKS” – a simple platform for high school students to design yearbooks.
MELANIE
“Yearbooks first, then the world.”
CLIFF
(laughing)
“Always thinking small, aren’t you?”
MELANIE throws a crumpled paper at him, both laughing.
Two years later, MELANIE stands in a sleek Silicon Valley office, wearing her best business clothes. She pitches her bigger vision to investors.
MELANIE
(passionate)
“Imagine design software so easy that anyone—a student or a grandparent—could create professional-looking graphics in minutes.”
But the story repeats all week: different offices, different investors, same answer. Polite smiles, handshakes, rejection.
INVESTOR 1
“Come back when you have more users.”
INVESTOR 2
“This market is too crowded.”
INVESTOR 3
“Do you have any tech experts on your team?”
Hours later, MELANIE looks out the airplane window on her flight back to Australia, sad but still determined.
MELANIE (Voice Over)
“I’ll be back. And next time, they’ll listen.”
In a busy Sydney coffee shop, MELANIE and CLIFF sit across from CAMERON ADAMS, a former Google designer. The table is covered with sketches and coffee cups.
CAMERON
(looking at their designs)
“I’ve been waiting for someone to build something like this. I just didn’t realize I would be part of it.”
CAMERON slides the designs back across the table.
CAMERON
“I’m in.”
MELANIE and CLIFF exchange excited looks. The final piece of their team is now complete.
August 2013. In a small office filled with computers and whiteboards covered in code, eight people work frantically. A countdown clock shows: “LAUNCH: 24 HOURS TO GO”
MELANIE
(to the team)
“Whatever happens tomorrow, we’ve already won. We built something new. Something that will change how people think about design.”
CAMERON finishes typing code.
CAMERON
“Done. We’re ready.”
The team gathers around MELANIE’s computer as she hovers the mouse over the “LAUNCH” button.
MELANIE
(taking a deep breath)
“Here goes everything.”
She clicks. After a moment of silence, everyone cheers as the first user signs up.
The next few years fly by. Each new office is bigger than the last. User numbers keep growing: 10,000… 100,000… 1,000,000…
Team meetings grow from a few people around a table to hundreds in a big room.
MELANIE speaks at conferences, growing more confident with each talk.
MELANIE (Voice Over)
“We weren’t just building a company. We were creating a new way to work, a new way to design, a new way to communicate with images.”
The Canva website keeps adding new features: social media templates, video editing, websites, presentations. What started as a simple yearbook tool has grown into a complete design platform.
Sunlight fills the Canva headquarters boardroom. Charts on the wall show impressive growth, but the meeting is tense.
BOARD MEMBER
“We could make three times more money if we focus on big business clients and cut some free features.”
MELANIE stands and walks to the window overlooking Sydney.
MELANIE
(firmly)
“We could chase quick money, or we can build something that lasts for decades. I know which one I’m here for.”
She turns back to face the room.
MELANIE
“Our mission hasn’t changed. Making design accessible to everyone means everyone—not just those who can pay high prices.”
Some board members nod in agreement.
The Canva office buzzes with excitement as champagne bottles pop. Screens around the room show news of the company’s $40 billion value in 2021. From a small yearbook company to one of the most valuable private companies in the world—an amazing journey.
MELANIE stands on a chair, tapping a glass for attention.
MELANIE
(raising her glass)
“To everyone who said it couldn’t be done.”
Everyone laughs and cheers.
MELANIE
“And to everyone here who proved them wrong. But remember—we’ve only accomplished one percent of what we can do. The journey has just begun.”
Camera flashes light up MELANIE and CLIFF, now partners in both business and life, as they announce their “Two-Step Plan” to give most of their wealth to charity, focusing on ending extreme poverty.
CLIFF
“Success without purpose is just showing off.”
MELANIE
“We have a platform that reaches millions. That’s not just an opportunity—it’s a responsibility.”
The audience applauds. Their hard-earned success will now help others.
As the sun sets, MELANIE walks alone through the now-huge Canva headquarters. Most people have gone home.
She stops at a wall showing framed memories: her first sketch of the Canva interface, photos of their first office, and major milestones.
She gently touches the original sketch.
MELANIE (Voice Over)
“From my mother’s living room to a global company. From rejection to revolution. From a simple idea to a platform that has created billions of designs.”
She walks to the window, looking out at the lights of Sydney Harbor.
MELANIE (Voice Over)
“We’re still at the beginning.”
Somewhere in the world, a YOUNG DESIGNER sits at their computer, frustrated with complicated design software. They search online and find Canva for the first time.
They open the website, surprised by how simple it looks. They start creating, smiling as they realize they can actually do this.
MELANIE (Voice Over)
“And somewhere, right now, someone who has never designed anything before is opening Canva for the first time, about to discover that they too can create something beautiful.”
The YOUNG DESIGNER finishes their first design, looking at it proudly.
MELANIE (Voice Over)
“That was the point all along.”
Today, Canva continues to transform how the world designs. With over 135 million monthly active users across 190 countries, what began as a simple idea in a university dorm room has become a global force in design democratization.
As Melanie Perkins often says, “Success isn’t just about building a great company—it’s about empowering others to create, communicate, and connect in ways they never thought possible.”