Startup Idea and Innovation of Lingoda
Lingoda is a language learning platform that assists individuals or groups. It offers one-on-one sessions for those looking for a more focused and personal learning experience, while it provides a virtual class set up for those who prefer learning in groups.
This platform makes learning English, German, French, and Spanish more accessible, as everything is done virtually, through telecommuting technology. Classes are available 24/7, and learners can schedule sessions depending on their availability.
Every class or session is handled by native-speaking teachers with sufficient experience in teaching the language. Courses are available for all types of learners, whether they are in the beginner or advanced levels. It has taught more than 80,000 students since 2013, with the help of more than 1,500 teachers.
Startup Timeline and History of Lingoda
- 2013 – Lingoda was founded in 2013 when it received funds through angel and early-stage venture capital investors.
- 2014 – The company increased its capital by participating in a seed round.
- 2015 – Its participation in a Series A round resulted in an early-stage fund.
- 2016 to 2019 – It received additional fundings through the Series A round, participated by later-stage venture capital investors.
- 2021 – It received more capital through a private equity round.
Founder and Key People
- Felix Wunderlich
Felix Wunderlich is a co-founder and the managing director of Lingoda [3]. He is also the Vice President of Sales and Partnerships [4].
Before establishing the language learning platform, he also co-founded VIP PAX Luxury Travel and worked as a Team Leader at Speachaffe. He studied at the University of Deusto and Stenden.
- Fabian Wunderlich
Fabian Wunderlich is a co-founder, managing director, and chief financial officer at Lingoda [5]. Aside from these roles, he also worked in other positions such as head of sales and chief executive officer. He worked at McKinsey & Company as a Senior Associate before establishing Lingoda.
His educational background consists of getting a diploma from WHU Otto Beisheim School of Management, Studying at HEC Paris as an MBA Exchange Student, and getting an MBA at the London Business School.
- Michael Shangkuan
Michael Shangkuan is currently the chief executive officer at Lingoda, where he previously served as a managing director [6]. Before this, he worked at Terra Education Inc., The Clorox Company, The Procter & Gamble Company, and many others.
He has a bachelor’s degree from Yale University and a Masters in Business Administration degree from Harvard Business School.
Funding Sources and Financial Profile
The company was able to accumulate a total of $82.9 million through a variety of funding rounds. It participated in a total of 10 rounds since 2013, with the largest amount being 57 million euros during the latest private equity round.
It has a total of 14 investors, five of which are leads. Some of the lead investors are Summit Partners, Claret Capital Partners, Grazia Equity.
Major Competitors
- Ego – https://egotranslating.com/
- Eleutian Technology – https://www.eleutian.com/
- Sanako – https://sanako.com/
Useful Links
References:
[1] https://www.lingoda.com/en/
[2] https://www.lingoda.com/en/
[3] https://www.linkedin.com/in/felix-wunderlich-14948138/?originalSubdomain=de
[4] https://pitchbook.com/profiles/company/57648-97#team
[5] https://www.linkedin.com/in/fabianwunderlich/?originalSubdomain=de
[6] https://www.linkedin.com/in/michael-shangkuan-638243/?originalSubdomain=de
[7] https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/lingoda/company_financials
