✍️ DocuSign's corona-conomy takeover
Hey Snackers,
Black Mirror has really outdone itself with its groundbreaking 6th Season, which is "Out now, everywhere." The dystopian show probably won't release new episodes for a while since we've all experienced Real Life 2020.
On a lighter note: Stocks continued to build on last week's gains — all 3 major indexes ended the day green, and the S&P 500 actually went positive for the year.
DocuSign suggests e-signatures are here to stay, along with its "free sample" strategy
I like million dollar deals, where's my pen?... Trick, I'm (Docu)signing. The latest trend accelerating in the corona-conomy: e-sigs (not the fruit vapor kind). Electronic signature icon DocuSign topped earnings expectations for the quarter, as the WFH/lockdown life triggered a digital shift for businesses:
- DocuSign's sales grew 39% and it added 68K new customers, for a global total of 661K paying customers.
- The demand surge was driven by an increased need for eSignatures as you execute contracts from your parents' basement.
- DocuSign CEO: "We don’t anticipate customers returning to paper or manual-based processes" — even when the corona-crisis is over.
It pays to be known... As the largest player in the e-signature world — with 70% of the market — DocuSign was the first company many thought of when needing to remotely execute a contract.
- In 2018, it was estimated that less than 30% of all business paperwork processes are fully digital. Now, many are sending their John Hancocks over the ether.
- Google searches for DocuSign jumped 50% from February to March, when mandatory WFH policies started hitting.
DocuSign is a shining example of the top-of-funnel strategy... Businesses flock to DocuSign for its free trial e-signatures — then DocuSign tries to sell them unlimited plans or its "Agreement Cloud," which includes a wider array of contract-management functions. The free e-sigs bring DocuSign traffic, attention, and gratitude — but 94% of its sales actually come from paid subscription services like unlimited plans and Agreement Cloud.
Wahed raises $25M for its Sharia-compliant investment platform
Getting wahed of the curve... Wahed Invest just raised $25M for its Islamic investment platform, in a round led by Saudi Aramaco's venture capital arm. The NY-based fintech calls itself the world’s first halal robo adviser. Halal: permitted under the laws of the Quran, the religious text of Islam.
- Wahed identified a problem with the typical robo-adviser: Most investment firms will put money into large, market-tracking funds such as the S&P 500. Problem?
- Many companies are at odds with Sharia law because of the products they sell — for example: companies that sell alcohol, pork, tobacco, or gambling products.
- Since Sharia extends to all aspects of life, including money and finance, Wahed solves the barrier for Muslims by screening investments for Sharia-compliance.
- Interest too: Companies with excess debt are also excluded, since Shariah forbids Muslims from earning or paying interest.
Include Islamic finance in the wide world of Fintech... In its last financing round in 2018, Wahed was valued at $100M after raising $8M in seed funding. Since May 2019, Wahed has expanded from the US & UK to service over 100K clients across 130 countries. Last October it launched in Malaysia, a country governed by Sharia law.
This could be a big customized market opportunity... And Wahed isn't the only Islamic fintech trying to cater to the world's 2B Muslims. In an industry in which customizing to consumer needs is key, these companies could expand quick — especially in Sharia-governed countries like Saudi Arabia. But they'll still face massive competition from traditional banks.
RVs are back: Thor Industries soars on mobile vacations (and WFmobileH)
Throw on the "Cross-Country" playlist... Thor Industries is the impressively named owner of big RV manufacturers like Airstream and Heartland. Thor's slogan: "Go Anywhere. Stay Anywhere." — doesn't seem very feasible in the corona-conomy. But Thor stock is up 43% over the month because investors think RVs can make it possible:
- Thor's sales fell 33% for the quarter ending in April — but, many RV dealers have reopened since then, and Thor restarted production at its North American plants.
- Thor's CEO says sales picked up significantly in May after he took the time to actually call a bunch of dealerships.
An aluminum box on wheels sounds appealing... when your Caribbean cruise was cancelled and you're terrified to get on a plane. Thor is seeing a growing number of first-time buyers and renters in 3 categories:
- Vacationers: Rampant unemployment and virus fears have boosted RVs' appeal as cheap, sanitary travel options — pile the whole family in for a trip to Tahoe (mask optional).
- Mobile workers: A step up from the "work-from-car" trend — people are using RVs as mobile offices while they work remote 9-to-5.
- 1st time “home” buyers: Some are ending their leases and financing RVs instead (RV with ocean view is cheaper than house with ocean view).
Vacation demand is actually increasing... All the stay-at-home-ing has recently been unleashed in a pent up demand for travel. People aren’t waiting for a COVID-19 vaccine to go on vacation — we're seeing more road trips, and also more staycations at rentals: Airbnb had more US bookings from May 17 to June 3rd than it did for the same period last year. More than the same period last year.
What else we’re Snackin’
- Gen Z: Kids ages 4-15 now spend an average of 80 minutes/day on TikTok, compared to 85 minutes/day on YouTube.
- Chuckie: Go-to 3rd grade party venue Chuck E. Cheese is reportedly trying to borrow money to avoid corona-induced bankruptcy.
- Zon'd: Slack partners with Amazon to take on their mutual Teams/cloud rival, Microsoft — Amazon will roll out Slack to all employees.
- Floored: The Nasdaq overtakes the NYSE with the most IPO money raised so far this year — Warner Music's $1.9B Nasdaq debut helped.
- Dunkies: Dunkin' (dropped the 'Donuts') plans to hire 25K new workers, and is launching its first hiring-focused ad campaign to do it.
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