PropertyGuru misses 50% growth target, but still manages 41%

• Singapore soft, but Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand exceed sales goals
• IPO plans remain in pipeline, news expected within 18 months

ONLINE real estate classifieds company PropertyGuru said it had increased revenue by more than 41% in 2013, although it did not achieve its 50% growth target.
 
This shortfall was attributed to lower-than-expected take-up by developer clients and corporate advertisers out of Singapore, the company said in a statement.
 
However all other countries – Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand – exceeded sales goals.
 
PropertyGuru cofounder and chief executive officer Steve Melhuish (pic) said 2013 saw continuous growth for the group across all its markets.
 
“We have further strengthened our rankings to lead amidst stiff competition,” he said, adding that an IPO (initial public offering) “remains in the pipeline and we expect to break news within an 18-month time frame.”
 
The company did not give specific revenue figures. “We will be more open as we are getting closer towards an IPO,” said Melhuish.
 
As for its other performance indicators, PropertyGuru said the second half of 2013 saw 1,205 new real estate agent memberships across all countries, netting a total of 28,265 paying agents year ending.
 
Visits to PropertyGuru’s websites across the four countries grew by 19% to reach 125 million, it said, citing Google Analytics. Pageviews increased by 29% to a total of 1.1 billion impressions, while its property listings increased by 69% to 805,060 at end-2013.
 
PropertyGuru also claimed to have expanded its leadership positions in Singapore and Thailand. Since the fourth quarter of 2013, the company has held the No 1 spot in Indonesia, and is currently ranked No 2 in Malaysia.
 
Melhuish said PropertyGuru’s greatest challenge is currently managing four countries in a fast-growing business as an SME (small and medium enterprise).
 
“This is why we have focused on hiring leadership talent over the last 12 months.
 
“It is very hard to find great talent with experience in the online sector in all the countries we are operating in, where we are facing strong competition from subsidiaries of large online firms, the online divisions of large corporates, and increasingly well-funded local startups,” he said.
 
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