Hopin grow sixfold and show no signs of stopping

Hopin is one of the fastest growing start-ups around. Their game-changing service lets users watch and interact with events virtually, broadcasts live events for up to 100,000 people and holds offshoot Q&A sessions and networking opportunities.

In the space of six months, the online events platform to watch has gone from being valued at £23m and employing eight people, to one which is now valued at £179m employing close to 100. As COVID-19 saw the world locked down, opportunities and new deals have opened up at a staggering rate for the London-based tech firm. Clients they are working with include: Financial Times, CNBC, Procter and Gamble, Slack and Verizon. The list goes on.

But the company says the speed of growth would have been ‘impossible’ without the support of Harper James Solicitors. Our team of specialist solicitors have been working with the London-based start-up to ensure all of the privacy terms and security settings on their site – which allows up to 100,000 to connect online for conferences and other events –  are secure. We provided them support with their main terms of business, privacy policies and reviewed supplier agreements. Our expert team has also liaised with them on rules around international GDPR and provided legal support on insurance and compliance risks.

We’ve also advised Hopin on the contracts they are drawing up with partners and helped in a number of complex negotiations. ‘Before the pandemic, we didn’t have terms and conditions on the website that we were completely happy with,’ says Lameece Nagib, Hopin’s head of operations.

‘Harper James has helped us to address that and made sure that absolutely everything is taken care of. There is no way we would have been able to move forward at the pace we have without their support.’

Hopin, who recently raised seed funding from venture capital firms Accel and Northzone, has found success during the pandemic because events around the world have been cancelled due to the new rules surrounding social distancing. Firms have instead used Hopin to host virtual conferences, seminars and summits. Many have become so reliant on it they are now looking at keeping the use of the site as a permanent tool. This, in turn, has led to scores of new contracts being drawn up between Hopin and its clients.

Harper James solicitors Rob Cobley and Ed Kilner have worked closely with the Hopin team to make sure all of their needs are met as they move forward as a business. Lameece continues: ‘What I’ve been most impressed with is the way Rob and Ed have dug deep, independently, into our website and made sure every base is covered. They’ve looked under the surface of the website and highlighted areas where we need to ensure we have correct terms and policies in place. That’s first-class support.’

‘And knowing you have that level of support is incredibly reassuring for us at a time when the work is coming in so thick and fast. The last six months have been a whirlwind. From day one, our founder Johnny Boufarhat said we would be the fastest-growing start-up in Europe. But the pandemic has obviously accelerated that process dramatically. It has been vital that we have a legal services provider we can rely on. In Harper James we have that, and much more.’

Commenting on the partnership Rob Cobley, IP commercial technology partner with Harper James said: ‘It’s been incredibly rewarding to support Hopin in such a fast-moving environment and develop what has now become a genuine partnership.’