Pinterest opens shop in Toronto to stick into $11.52bn Canadian market
Pinterest has announced the opening of its first office in Canada, located in downtown Toronto.
Pinterest has arrived in Toronto with plans to stick into $11.52bn Canadian ad spend market / Scott Webb via Unsplash
The expansion has been made for the social platform to serve the thousands of local advertisers in the country, and to tap into a market said to spend $11.52bn in national advertising in 2018. According to Comscore, 12 million people use the platform, and have saved over 4.5 million ideas on Pinterest in Canada each day.
In a blog post, Pinterest said that 80% of signups come from outside of the United States, and has marked international growth as an opportunity. Retailer Canadian Tire, Nestle Canada, Nature’s Path, and tattoo startup Inkbox, had been listed by the company as some of the brands already utilizing the platform. The platform also announced that by year’s end Canadian advertisers will have the ability to target French-speaking Canadians.
Named to manage the office was Erin Elofson, the company’s country manager for Canada. Elofson, a former head of sales for Facebook Canada, also spent 11 years at Microsoft, most notably as global lead for its partnership with BMO Financial Group.
Elofson said in a statement: “Pinterest is already deeply embedded in our culture and Canadians love Pinterest because they want to discover and try new things. They are relentlessly seeking inspiration to enhance their own lives. Canadian businesses have the opportunity to offer the right products and services to Pinners to help them realize those aspirations and I'm looking forward to working with these businesses.”
Jon Kaplan, Pinterest’s head of global partnerships, added: “We have a strong, passionate user base in Canada and there is a great opportunity for businesses to connect with these people that are actively considering what to do or buy next. With the addition of a proven industry expert in Erin who will lead our growing new office, we are committed to the Canadian market and the many businesses we look forward to working with.”
As the company looks to expand globally, it has also recently established an in-house consultancy, using its data to help brands appeal to audiences in the real world and to enable the company to transition into a fully shoppable platform.