Podcast: Allen Lau On Wattpad’s Accelerated Growth And Why He’s Eager To Hop On A Plane Again
Wattpad, a publishing and entertainment company based in Halifax and Toronto, has 90 million monthly users and stories on its platform that have been published as books and turned into shows and movies for places like Netflix and Hulu.
On the latest episode of the Huddle “Home Office” podcast, host Mark Leger chats with co-founder and CEO Allen Lau about Wattpad being acquired by the South Korean company, Naver, for more than $600-million (U.S.) and its plans for accelerated growth of the company and its Halifax headquarters.
Allen and Mark also talked about the balance of remote and office work as we emerge from the pandemic, and the need to travel again to see clients and employees in person, not just on video calls. He’s been working in a basement office at his midtown Toronto home for too long, he is eager to fly again and get back into his office downtown.
“Any frequent business traveller, they always cringe, saying, ‘I’m on the plane again, really?’” he says. “But after 15 months working in my basement non-stop, I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I’m dying to hop onto a plane.”
Listen to Mark’s conversation with Allen on this week’s “Home Office” podcast in the player above or on platforms like Apple or Spotify.
The Huddle “Home Office” podcast features conversations with New Brunswick and Nova Scotia community leaders, entrepreneurs and analysts about the issues and events that accelerate and enrich the growth of the region’s economy and culture.
Check out the Huddle podcast archive for more conversations about the Atlantic Canadian economy, which include feature interviews with entrepreneurial people like David Myles, Bryana Ganong, Rhiannon Davies and Cathy Bennett. And please go to podcast platforms like Spotify and Apple, search for “Huddle Home Office” and subscribe.