In general, the SaaS world has struggled over the last year and a half. 2023 was another down year for venture capital going into enterprise software, with the value of those transactions slipping 33% last year, according to data collected by PitchBook.
And the outlook hasn’t been much better in 2024, with SaaS startup funding tracking to be the lowest in years.
But that industry slump hasn’t hit Saleo, a data-driven demo platform, in quite so dramatic fashion. In fact, after raising its $13 million Series A in late 2023, co-founder and CEO Justin McDonald told Hypepotamus the team has reached some impressive milestones and metrics even in an “anemic” SaaS world. Saleo is on track to 2x the company’s ARR (annual recurring revenue) and is set to double its employee headcount by the end of the year. It is actively recruiting for product, engineering, sales, marketing, and customer success roles.
Saleo’s secret weapon? Atlanta-first hiring, McDonald told Hypepotamus.
Saleo’s Atlanta-First Growth Strategy
To grow headcount, McDonald said the team has been hyperfocused on recruiting talent from around the Metro Atlanta area. That “Atlanta-first hiring plan and strategy” is why Saleo opened a marquee office space at the Avalon, a popular live-work-play destination in the City of Alpharetta.
Office space – and how much time employees need to be in those office spaces – has been a hotly contested topic in the startup world. Many startups have downsized or eliminated their physical office spaces, adapting to a remote-first work environment. But that hasn’t been the case across the entire tech industry, as some companies have changed their work-from-home requirements over the last year.
But McDonald said having a physical office is a “true multiplier” for Saleo’s growth. He said the team picked the Avalon because they “wanted a destination” where employees wanted to spend their time. It has also made it easier for them to attract talent living outside of Atlanta’s I-285 Perimeter.
“The in-person collaboration and intentionality that occurs is unmatched and the productivity aspect is very real. Also having a home base allows us to run in-person interviews which we believe has been pivotal in our hiring decisions and getting a solid read on candidates,” he added. “There’s only so much you can gauge remotely. Having a desirable location in the Avalon has also equipped us to host customer events to engage our market in ways not possible when remote.”
McDonald is no stranger to the sales-focused SaaS world. He was CEO of RambleChat, an Atlanta-based conversational marketing startup that was acquired by Terminus in 2020. He went on to be a Senior Vice President at Terminus, one of the larger SalesTech success stories to be built out of Atlanta.
To date, many of Saleo’s early employees have come from local SalesTech giants like Salesloft and Terminus, according to LinkedIn. With Saleo, McDonald is looking to keep the Atlanta SalesTech talent pool growing.
“Remote first is great for some companies. But we’ve just seen such value and culture impact and growth when you bring people together,” he added.
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Photos provided by Saleo