Dallas, TX and New York, NY – April 11, 2024 – HighLevel Inc. (“HighLevel” or the “Company”), a leading provider of sales and marketing automation software for marketing agencies, entrepreneurs, and small businesses (“SMBs”), today announced it has received a minority growth investment from General Atlantic, a leading global growth equity firm. After another year of strong growth and profitability, HighLevel joins General Atlantic’s portfolio of disruptive global technology companies, with former investments including Airbnb, Clear, Snap, and Uber. The partnership with General Atlantic enables HighLevel to invest even further in key growth and innovation initiatives across product and AI to continue to provide a differentiated experience and platform to its clients.
Founded in 2018, HighLevel is an all-in-one sales and marketing software platform purpose-built for marketing agencies, entrepreneurs, and SMBs. HighLevel provides its customers with comprehensive sales and marketing capabilities, including CRM, website and app building, automated marketing campaigns, reputation management, and social media marketing. This robust platform enables customers to build top-of-funnel leads, increase conversion, and ultimately drive new business. The Company has developed deep relationships with its network of affiliates that help it connect and engage with customers. Over the last three years, HighLevel has scaled meaningfully – growing more than 5x while maintaining profitability – by enabling clients to adapt their customer acquisition and engagement strategies for the digital world.
HighLevel’s Co-Founders and largest shareholders – Shaun Clark, Varun Vairavan, and Robin Alex – remain steadfast in their leadership roles and focused on executing its vision of providing innovative solutions tailored to the unique needs of agencies and small businesses.
“Our commitment to empowering businesses to connect with their customers in more meaningful ways remains central to our mission here at HighLevel,” commented Shaun Clark, Co-Founder and CEO of HighLevel. “We’re not just about growth for the sake of growth – we’re about making a real difference in the lives of our users. General Atlantic’s four-decade track record of strategically supporting and scaling mission-driven technology companies aligns closely with our own growth trajectory and ambitions. This investment allows us to stay true to that goal while we continue to innovate and set ourselves apart in the industry.”
Robin Alex, Co-Founder and COO of HighLevel, emphasized, “With General Atlantic’s support, we are excited to continue driving even greater success for our clients and their end-customers as they navigate an increasingly complex digital marketing ecosystem. Our dedication to HighLevel’s mission is as strong as ever.”
“General Atlantic is the ideal partner for HighLevel for many reasons,” continued Varun Vairavan, Co-Founder and CTO of HighLevel. “The team not only understands our distinctive distribution model but also shares our vision of supporting entrepreneurs and business owners worldwide through purpose-built technology. Together, we are committed to revolutionizing the way businesses connect with their customers, underpinned by our values of innovation and customer-centricity.”
General Atlantic brings extensive experience partnering with high-growth companies with business models focused on supporting SMBs in the digital transition, including Gusto, Jobber, JumpCloud, Squarespace, and ThreatLocker, in addition to a robust platform of value-creation resources to support HighLevel’s continued growth.
Aaron Goldman, Managing Director and Head of Enterprise Technology at General Atlantic, said, “HighLevel provides tailor-made solutions that span all stages of the marketing and sales journey. Shaun, Varun, and Robin are committed leaders who bring a deep understanding of customer priorities and are focused on further growing the HighLevel platform to address the specific needs of its community.”
Asher Hecht, Principal at General Atlantic, continued, “HighLevel’s value proposition and differentiated model have allowed it to unlock and connect with the market in a unique way. The distinct agency and small business ecosystem that HighLevel has built is a testament to the resonance and effectiveness of its product.”
Preston McKenzie, Operating Partner at General Atlantic, noted, “General Atlantic has longstanding thematic conviction in the digitization of SMBs, as we see entrepreneurs around the world adopting current technology to run their businesses more effectively. We are excited to leverage our experience in support of the fantastic product and community that HighLevel has built.”
As part of the transaction, Asher Hecht and Preston McKenzie will join the HighLevel Board of Directors. Existing investor PeakEquity Partners will remain an active shareholder in the Company and retain its Board seat.
Greg Case, Managing Partner at PeakEquity Partners, concluded, “Our journey with HighLevel has been remarkable, and we’re excited to continue supporting its progress.”
J.P. Morgan Securities LLC acted as exclusive financial advisor and O’Melveny & Myers LLP acted as legal counsel to HighLevel. Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP acted as legal counsel to General Atlantic.