Profits, revenues at Hubspot Ireland boomed before global job cuts

Turnover across marketing software firm’s European operations jumped 32% to almost €391.3m last year

Profits and revenues at the Irish arm of Hubspot rose sharply in the year before the company announced job cuts at its Dublin office as part of cost-cutting measures across the group.

Newly filed accounts for Hubspot Ireland, the trading entity behind the marketing software company’s European headquarters in Dublin, revealed the New York listed group had more than 1,200 employees in the Republic in 2022, up from 1,034 in 2021.

The company, founded by Brian Halligan and Dharmesh Shan in 2006 at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, has significantly ramped up its presence in Ireland since arriving here in 2013, taking a lease on a 112,000 sq ft office at Sir John Rogerson’s Quay in 2018 to house its European headquarters.

In January, against the backdrop of a slowdown across the wider tech sector, the firm said it would trim its global headcount by 7 per cent, or around 500 jobs. About 80 jobs were lost in Dublin

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“Our business boomed throughout the pandemic but in 2022, things took a downward turn,” Hubspot chief executive Yamini Rangan said at the time. “We came into 2022 anticipating growth would slow down from 2021, but we experienced a faster deceleration than we expected.”

The recent Companies Registration Office filings show revenues across Hubspot’s European operations jumped 32 per cent to almost €391.3 million in the year to the end of December 2022. The Irish entity swung from a €16.7 million loss in 2021 to a €10.2 million profit last year.

Despite paying a €26.5 million dividend to its US parent in 2021, none were proposed or paid in the year but the directors noted in a report attached to the account they were “satisfied” with the results, which were driven by increases in customers and increase in demand for its products.

The directors said, however, that hiring was “slow” in the second half of the year and results benefited from lower discretionary spending as the market began to turn in late 2022.

Hubspot Ireland paid out €185.1 million in wages, salaries and other benefits over the period, including €48.8 million in share-based payments.

The group has performed strongly throughout 2023, with second quarter earnings up 25 per cent to $529 million (€501.99 million), and Hubspot’s stock price has climbed more than 50 per cent on the New York Stock Exchange this year.

Ian Curran

Ian Curran

Ian Curran is a Business reporter with The Irish Times