Hint: We are strategically collaborating with other companies.
This article is a collaboration with Shinji Kaneko.
Safie, a cloud camera SaaS, has been approved for listing on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Mothers and is scheduled to be newly listed on September 29, 2021.
Safie was founded in 2014 by three Sony-affiliated venture companies specializing in image processing technology.
Our business is a cloud service that stores and analyzes images from surveillance cameras. Specifically, customers can install Safie's surveillance cameras in stores, etc., so that the captured images can be saved and analyzed on Safie's cloud, and can be used from remote locations.
By the way, the representative, Ryuhei Sadoshima, is a cousin of Yohei Sadoshima, who worked on "Dragon Zakura" and "Space Brothers" as an editor.
"The same year of the entrepreneurial family" Safie Sadoshima Ryuhei x Cork Sadoshima Yohei Dialogue
Yohei Sadoshima was also in charge of editing the business manga "Startup Le", which was originally based on the "Notebook for reading financial results".
Startup Apple!
This time, I will explain from Safie's securities registration statement, focusing on the rapid growth of "ARR (Annual Ordinary Income)".
Now, I will pick up and introduce important points from the securities registration statement. First, let's take a look at the specific service content of Safie.
Safie provides the cloud recording type video platform "Safie" to restaurants, retail stores, construction sites, etc.
Customers first purchase a surveillance camera dedicated to Safie and install it in stores and construction sites. By doing so, the recorded video will be sent over the network to Safie's servers for analysis. Customers can use the stored data for crime prevention, customer analysis, remote control, and so on.
Next, let's take a look at the explanation of the external environment surrounding Safie.
Safie's service has responded to the restrictions on movement due to the influence of the Korona-ka, the need for visualization of work by remote monitoring, and the growing demand for DX conversion of on-site operations.
In addition, because stable and high-speed networks such as 5G are becoming widespread, it has become possible to transmit large volumes of recorded data at low cost while maintaining high image quality, which may be cited as the background of its widespread use.
Next, let's look at the business model.
There are two main points of Safie's profit. One is the sale of surveillance cameras, which is a spot-type profit. The second is the monthly usage fee for surveillance camera images and the provision of optional services, which are recurring type (continuous type) revenue.
So how much do you specifically sell?
The initial cost of Safie is 21,780 yen per camera, and the monthly fee is 1,320 yen per camera. The monthly usage fee varies depending on the recording plan (number of days to save the video), and if you want to save one year's worth of video, the monthly fee will be 7,700 yen.
Also noteworthy is Safie's partnerships with many large companies. Especially for major partners, it seems that they have a strong relationship because they are not only business relationships but also shareholders.
Especially in the last few years, we have been aggressively expanding to our partners on an OEM basis.
November 2017 Started OEM provision to Canon Marketing Japan
December 2017 KDDI started providing OEM to offices collectively
October 2018 OEM provision to NTT East
March 2019 OEM offer to USEN
June 2019 OEM offer to SECOM
July 2020 Started OEM provision to NTT Communications
In fact, we can see that the ratio of sales partners to total sales in 2020 is 60%, which is a large proportion.
So how much does Safie actually sell in the SaaS model each year? Let's take a look at the changes in ARR (annual balance of payments) from the past.
Safie's ARR is growing very strongly.
Transition of ARR
・ End of December 2019 1.195 billion yen
・ As of the end of December 2020, 328.5 billion yen (YoY + 175%)
・ As of the end of June 2021, 4.549 billion yen
Changes in the number of billing cameras
・ 42,000 units at the end of December 2019
・ 101,000 units at the end of December 2020 (YoY + 140%)
・ 129,000 units as of the end of June 2021
It should be noted that at the end of December 2020, the number of billing cameras grew by YoY + 140%, while the growth of ARR was + 175%.
Since ARR has increased more than the number of charged cameras, it can be read that not only the number of cameras has increased but also the monthly usage fee (recording plan) per unit has been upselled.
・ ARR = MRR x 12 months
・ MRR = Number of billing cameras x Monthly usage fee (per unit)
So far, we've looked at Safie's business and key KPIs.
You can see that sales are growing rapidly while making good use of partnerships with major companies.
In the second half of the article, we will focus on the rapidly growing Safie ARR and delve into its growth factors.
This article is ideal for anyone interested in a detailed analysis of SaaS or considering investing in Safie.
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・ Q. What are the three reasons why cloud camera SaaS Safie is newly listed and ARR is growing rapidly to 4.5 billion yen, 2.7 times the previous year?Answer
・ Factor 1: Expansion of ●● of services
・ Factor 2: ●● Improvement by expanding the provision to ●●
・ Factor 3: Upsell by ●●
·summary