Case Study: Xero

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Global Software Pioneer Targets One Million UK Customers

Country: New Zealand, Australia, Singapore, UK

One of the world’s leading accountancy software providers plans to more than triple its UK customer base and provide its pioneering technology to over one million small and medium-sized businesses.

Xero was established in New Zealand in 2006 as a disruptive cloud accounting platform for business owners. Since its launch, the UK has been a crucial platform for its impressive international growth story.

The business has grown to achieve a market cap of AU$6.86 billion* on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) and is a top S&P/ASX 100 business.

Xero has more than 2,300 employees across its offices around the world, including New Zealand, Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, United States and the United Kingdom. On the inaugural 2018 Financial Times FT1000 High-Growth Companies Asia Pacific list, Xero was the fastest growing tech company in the $200 million+ segment.

Another example of how the UK brings innovation to life

Xero made the decision to expand into the UK in 2008 and target the country’s 5.7 million small and medium-sized businesses. But, with limited brand awareness outside of New Zealand, Xero faced a significant challenge when breaking into the world’s leading financial centre.

Gary Turner, Managing Director and Co-Founder of Xero in the UK said: “Cloud software means that our offering can easily travel to new markets, so when we looked at expanding further, the UK was an obvious choice. Quite simply, we had to be there. The UK economy is ten times the size of our home market and has a globally connected, innovative and thriving business and technology community. By entering the market, we not only got access to new customers but also the expertise and knowledge the market offers.”

More than a decade on, Xero employs nearly 350 people in the UK, supporting more than 355,000 customers and achieving revenues of £50m. It is regarded as the UK’s number one cloud accountancy software provider for small business finance.

The business now plans to use the success of its truly pioneering technology to reach one million UK customers – an ambition that would nearly triple its customer base. Turner attributes Xero’s success to a lot of hard work by his ambitious team and incredible support from the global Xero group.

Turner also credits support from the UK’s Department for International Trade (DIT). He added: “When we set out our UK expansion plans, the Xero brand was still quite small and relatively unknown outside our domestic market. Through DIT events and introductions to its extensive networks, we were able to raise awareness of Xero and get in front of the right people. DIT’s support in those early stages, and since, really unlocked the UK market for us, which has been a major driving force behind the international growth of Xero and made us what we are today.”

The cloud: a new era for accounting software

Xero has pioneered the transition to digital accounting software for small and medium sized businesses. More than 1.6 million subscribers now use its cloud-based services which aim to better connect people with their finances. Its tools help business owners to do everything from making payments and raising invoices to reviewing inventory and managing business performance.

Commenting on Xero’s role in the future of the industry, Turner said: “Xero is all about embracing the opportunities that technology provides to create a whole new experience for business owners and really connect them with their finances. Over the last decade, we’ve seen a game-changing transformation in how software can be used across devices. It has brought online accountancy services into a completely new era in terms of ease of use and ease of access. We are working at the cutting edge of applying Artificial Intelligence (AI) and machine learning to business processes. These are really exciting times to be at Xero.”

The UK Government’s Department for International Trade (DIT) helps connect international buyers with UK goods and services to meet their needs, supports overseas companies to locate and grow in the UK, drives both inward and outward investment, negotiates market access and trade deals, and champions free trade.