On the TechTO stage ×1
First seen on the TechTO stage in 2016. Every talk is searchable — ask the archive about Michael ↗
In their words
Hiring in North America is like getting married in Vegas. Could be for a good time, could be for a long time, but if it isn't right, you can part ways. Hiring in Europe is like getting a tattoo on your face.
While our customers were all tied up in a very expensive fight for control of the US market, we quickly expanded to every other country that looked like ebooks could take off.
Around the web ×1
Quick answers
What was the TechTO talk about?
What nobody tells you about growing an international business — recruiting, culture, and handling different markets, from a company that was selling books outside Canada almost from the start. Presented at the September 2016 TechTO.
What is Rakuten Kobo?
A Toronto e-reading company: e-readers, an ebook and audiobook store, and the Kobo Plus subscription. It began in 2009 as Shortcovers inside Indigo Books and Music and was spun out as Kobo that December.
Who owns Kobo?
Rakuten, the Japanese technology group, which agreed in November 2011 to buy all of Kobo's shares for US$315 million; the deal closed in January 2012.