Building the world’s leading education platform for high achievers
Founder – Jamie Beaton, and Board Chair – Sir John Key.
The size of an investment should reflect the strength of your conviction. We showed just that by leading the Series D raise with a NZ$25m investment, making it both the third investment from Growth Fund 6 and the largest initial cheque in Movac's history.
The story of Crimson
Crimson was founded by Jamie Beaton in 2013, with a focus on improving access to elite education pathways for high-performing students. What began as an admissions consulting business evolved into a global education platform spanning tutoring, online schooling, test preparation and personalised academic support.
At the core of the business is a technology platform that delivers data-driven, individualised learning pathways supported by a growing global dataset of student outcomes. Enabling more structured, measurable and scalable education delivery, while improving outcomes for students across a wide range of geographies and education systems.
Jamie’s belief that high-quality education should be universally accessible is clearly reflected in what he has built. From being accepted into 25 of the world’s leading universities as a New Zealand high school student, to completing further studies at institutions including Harvard, Stanford, Oxford and Yale, he has combined academic achievement with the parallel task of building a global company.
The solution
The company had established a substantial sustainable advantage, driven by its technology, superb student outcomes, outstanding team and high-quality brand. Well placed for continued success within the large global EdTech market.
The result was a founder-led organisation defined by intensity, curiosity and commercial execution, supported by a leadership team capable of scaling across markets.
Today, Crimson operates across more than 25 countries and employs over 800 people. With an integrated education platform combining admissions support, tutoring, online schooling and personalised learning tools.
The investment case
Movac’s conviction came down to several factors:
- World-class Founder and Management team.
- Vast majority of its revenue comes from overseas.
- Operated in multiple large, yet fragmented markets, with no single player having a dominant market share.
- A long record of impressive growth, with plenty of upside remaining.
- Excellent efficiencies for a business of its nature, reaching breakeven in the last couple of years.
- Growing at top-quartile rates, in a capital-efficient manner, an ideal position given current market conditions.
With further developments to the platform, they are well placed to continue to scale efficiently and effectively.
Final thoughts
Working with Jamie, FZ and the rest of the Crimson team has been a delight. They set a cracking pace during the investment and due diligence process, bringing high energy and enthusiasm right the way through. They’ve certainly set a high bar and we’re looking forward to continuing this journey with them.
This was a team-wide effort at Movac, with multiple Operating Partners stepping up alongside the investment team. Thank you to everyone for your insights and wisdom. We’re also grateful to our external advisors for their continued support, given this was Movac’s largest single cheque written to date.
Written by:
Mark Vivian, Partner