Freshworks Success Story: From Startup to Global SaaS Giant

The remarkable story of Freshworks’ journey from a small, Chennai-based startup to one of the leading global SaaS companies is one based on vision, innovation, and perseverance. Founded in 2010 by Girish Mathrubootham and Shan Krishnasamy, Freshworks set forth on a mission focused on customer support. 

The first product was Freshdesk, a friendly and cost-effective cloud-based customer support software that struck a chord with customer support users in the small and medium business sector. Over the years, Freshworks added to its portfolio products such as Freshservice, Freshsales, Freshchat, and Freshmarketer, addressing a whole spectrum of customers. Freshworks now has over 60,000 customers in over 120 countries and has received significant funding from a variety of investors. 

Freshworks went public in September 2021 through an initial NASDAQ IPO, establishing Freshworks among the best globally publicly listed SaaS companies servicing customers in the market today. Freshworks, under Girish’s leadership, has disrupted the Indian SaaS space and continues to prove that startups can evolve into global companies with a customer-first approach to innovation and a sustainable business model.

Freshworks Startup Journey

Founded in 2010 by Girish Mathrubootham and Shan Krishnasamy in Chennai, India, Freshworks emerged from Girish’s mediocre experience working in customer service. Building on the customer service support experience, Girish built Freshdesk (cloud-based helpdesk) to help companies manage customer service and support issues, no matter the size of the company.

Their first product quickly found product-market fit, addressing the needs of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) seeking an easy-to-use, affordable help desk support solution for customer service response management. Their initial success would further validate Freshworks as a vendor for future operating SaaS companies. 

Freshworks Growth Story: Reaching New Heights

Freshdesk’s rapid growth enabled Freshworks to continue to expand its product footprint in order to capture the full scope of business needs.  A range of additional products was developed, including Freshservice (IT service management software), Freshsales (CRM software), Freshchat (live chat support), and Freshmarketer (marketing automation).  This outcome was intended to work collectively, presenting a single suite of products and tools that aligned the Freshworks products to UI and impact, while enhancing customer engagement and operational efficiencies.

The strategic thrust toward rolling out products related to Freshdesk allowed the company to touch several dimensions of business needs, accelerating growth and enhancing the company’s competitive positioning in an overall SaaS ecosystem.

Freshworks Business Model: The Customer Comes First

Freshworks utilizes a subscription-based pricing structure across layers of its solutions that provide flexibility to its customers., A combination of cloud software solutions, designed to be flexible, scalable, and easy to implement, enables businesses to become agile in the marketplace. 

The company has been successful employing such a disciplined and customer-centric approach, with over 60,000 businesses using Freshworks solutions in more than 120 different countries. The result of affordable and effective solutions has allowed the company to acquire a customer base of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises and enterprise products in a similar form, equally beneficial for both customer types.

Financing Rounds at Freshworks

Freshworks journeyed from startup to global SaaS giant largely on the back of a multitude of funding rounds. Over the years, the company completed nine funding rounds for a total of $484 million. Freshworks took investments from well-respected firms such as Accel, Sequoia Capital, CapitalG (Google’s venture capital), and Tiger Global Management. The funding was to enable the company to accelerate product development, grow the company, and increase marketing spend. 

The biggest funding round in history for Freshworks occurred in November 2019 when it raised $150 million in Series H funding, boosting the company’s valuation to $3.5 billion. The funding was used to help the company scale in its operations and strengthen its position in the SaaS market. 

The Freshworks IPO

On September 22nd, 2021, the highlight of Freshworks’ story was the IPO. The company was listed on the Nasdaq and raised $1.03B, which resulted in a valuation of $10.1B. This not only reassured the public regarding Freshworks’ revenue-generating capacity, but it also represented a major milestone in the Indian SaaS space- Freshworks would be the first India-born SaaS company to list on a U.S. exchange, a phenomenal milestone for the Indian SaaS space that the company itself would not downplay.

The IPO was not only validation of the company’s business model, positive revenue growth, and the confidence that investors had in the company and its leaders, but it also indicated a global acceptance of Indian technology companies, and SaaS entrepreneurs in particular.

Freshworks goes Global: Expanding into New Locations

Following its IPO, Freshworks also had greater momentum to begin global expansion initiatives. Specifically, it opened offices in important international markets, such as the United States, Europe, and the Middle East. These included establishing new data centers – including one in the United Arab Emirates- as a way to serve customers more locally. 

This global strategy also meant Freshworks was able to strengthen alliances and partnerships with other technology firms to provide more integrated solutions and improve value to customers worldwide. These actions improved the firm’s international presence and position.

Girish Mathrubootham: Co-founder of Freshworks

Girish Mathrubootham certainly plays a very important role in the Freshworks story and its resulting success story. After Girish had already established his career at Zoho Corporation, where he was responsible for product management and worked directly with customers, he had in mind a vision of a customer support platform that was easy to use, with very little to no cost. 

This led them to develop a Startup in 2010, with the name Freshdesk. Then, when Girish managed to expand Freshworks into a company, he turned a startup into a worldwide (and public) SaaS company. 

Girish’s leadership always showed a preference for customer-oriented innovations. Girish showed this from day one at Freshworks. However, everything he did successfully for himself and the company was simply based on the extension of his mind and thought process, and then he worked out how to communicate it to the team and the company. 

In May 2023, he stepped down from his role as CEO to focus on the next startup, the Together Fund. 

Key Milestones in Freshworks’ Journey

Freshworks SaaS Company

Freshworks has adopted the cloud model and transformed itself into a SaaS company, whereby cloud software solutions give businesses the option of scaling their businesses without the infrastructure investment. 

The company’s model, at the time of writing, follows the larger wave of digital transformation of businesses around the world, where businesses are embracing cloud technologies to pursue efficiency and agility, among other benefits.

Freshworks has adopted the cloud, and there is little doubt that the company has emerged as a leader in the Sasi model, servicing an evolving arc of businesses in different ways.

Conclusion

Freshworks’ accomplishment is not just the success of a young company but an example for budding entrepreneurs. Starting in Chennai and becoming the first Indian SaaS company to operate on Nasdaq, Freshworks demonstrates the power of vision, tenacity, and a customer-first approach.

Freshworks proves that global success is possible from outside Silicon Valley when innovation and execution are aligned. Girish Mathrubootham turned obstacles into opportunities, inspiring a new generation of technology entrepreneurs in India.

The company’s story illustrates the importance of being responsive to customer needs, adopting cloud-based solutions, and scaling through the SaaS business model. Freshworks stands as a symbol of India’s growing recognition in the global SaaS industry.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What was Girish Mathrubootham’s motivation to start Freshworks?
Girish was motivated to start Freshworks as a result of a bad customer service experience that he had, and wanted to create a better alternative for businesses. 

How many products does Freshworks offer?
Freshworks offered a product suite, including Freshdesk, Freshservice, Freshsales, Freshchat, and Freshmarketer. 

What is the revenue model for Freshworks?
Freshworks has a subscription-based pricing model with different levels of offerings that fit businesses. 

Has Freshworks made acquisitions?
Yes. Freshworks has done a number of acquisitions, including Device42, to add to its product offering.

Who became CEO after Girish Mathrubootham?
Dennis Woodside took over as CEO after Girish Mathrubootham in May 2024.