Early Life
Melanie Perkins was born in Perth, Western Australia, in 1987. She attended Sacred Heart College. As a child, she was passionate about figure skating and started a small business selling handmade scarves at 14, which she credits with developing her entrepreneurial drive. She later enrolled at the University of Western Australia, majoring in communications, psychology, and commerce.
Rise to Success
Perkins co-founded Fusion Books, a web-based yearbook publisher, in 2007. In 2013, she co-founded Canva with Cliff Obrecht and Cameron Adams. They launched the graphic design platform to make design accessible to everyone. The platform quickly gained traction, attracting millions of users worldwide. Within five years, Canva reached a $1 billion valuation. Perkins has been recognized for her efforts in addressing gender disparity in the technology industry.
Key Business Strategies
Canva's success is attributed to its user-friendly drag-and-drop interface and extensive library of templates. It initially targeted influencers and social media marketers. Perkins and her team also focused on building a strong company culture and expanding globally. Canva expanded into AI-powered tools to drive growth. Today, Canva has over 220 million users and is valued at $42 billion as of 2025.
Philanthropy
Perkins and her husband, Cliff Obrecht, joined the Giving Pledge and have committed to donating at least half of their fortune to philanthropic causes. They are planning to create a foundation that focuses on alleviating the effects of climate change and global wealth inequality.
