Novakid reports healthy growth in 1H2022

Novakid, Europe’s leading online English platform for children and an established EdTech company reinventing learning English as a Second Language (ESL), increased its presence in the Asia-Pacific region and conducted 2.8 M lessons during the first half of 2022.

During 1H2022, Novakid continued to strengthen its positions in 49 markets across the globe. As a result, the company’s current client portfolio in Europe accounts for 70%, with Romania as a new growth market in Europe. The MENA region (Middle East and North Africa) accounts for 14% (2pp increase since the end of 2021). The Asia-Pacific countries (Malaysia, Indonesia, Japan and South Korea), now represent almost 16% of the company’s portfolio. The client base in the region has grown twice over compared to the beginning of the year. The most significant results are demonstrated in South Korea (34%) and Japan (78%).

“To operate successfully in the highly competitive international EdTech and ESL markets, businesses need strong diversification strategies, especially in these times of social and economic uncertainty. For this reason, Novakid’s priority for the first half of 2022 was to focus on new growth regions – Hong Kong, Japan and South Korea – where online language learning is driven by the massive digitalization of education over the last few years,” said Dmitry Malin, co-founder and COO of Novakid.

The total number of English lessons conducted on Novakid’s proprietary software since the beginning of 2022 reached 2.8 million, which is 15% higher than the total number of classes delivered during 2021 (2.4 million). At peak times, the platform hosted up to 1,400 lessons simultaneously.

Novakid has increased its teaching staff to nearly 2,700 native English speakers and near-native tutors. The company has continued to improve the qualifications of its teachers by launching a series of webinars and training courses.

The focus during H12022 was the further development of quality and innovative educational content for learning English. Following the release of the first-ever product on the ESL market – Novakid Magic Academy, a story-based, gamified English learning environment – at the end of 2021, Novakid has implemented this curriculum with over 130,000 students of all ages and levels in 6 months.

The Novakid Magic Academy, which forms part of the Novakid Game World, has proven its effectiveness with regards to the learning outcomes of young students: the average learning performance rate is 12% higher after a minimum of four months of lessons, resulting in a 39% better learning performance for students enrolled in the Level I Novakid Magic Academy ESL course. Speech-to-text solutions and emotion recognition software are being developed to make the in-lesson analysis more advanced.

For the second year in a row, Novakid has been included in the annual GSV EdTech top 150 list of the leading private companies in the digital learning space. In March 2022, Novakid was included on the Forbes Top 500 list of America’s Best Startup Employers. Novakid has also been recognised as a finalist in the 2022 EdTech Digest Awards in the category ‘Best Language Learning Solution’.

In June 2022, Novakid was selected as the winner of the “Overall Language Learning Company of the Year” in the 2022 EdTech Breakthrough Awards. Analysts studied the work of more than 80 online schools operating in Europe. The experts assessed the number of active students and their level of satisfaction with the educational process, the level of training and experience of teachers, as well as prices.

“The combination of product expansion and innovation over the past six months has led to impressive growth. We rolled out our new gamified story-based English curriculum – Novakid Game World – to all students during H12022, and can proudly guarantee that the methodology, which is based on engagement, leads students to language proficiency. The results of our young English learners are the biggest achievement for Novakid,” commented Max Azarov, co-founder and CEO of Novakid.

Accelerated by Covid-19, the online ESL industry for both children and adult students is set to continue its growth trajectory for the next few decades. According to the latest research study Online Language Learning Market run by Facts & Factors, the market is predicted to grow to around $28,5 billion by 2028 with a CAGR of around 18,8% during the period 2022 to 2028. At the same time, the K-12 education market is growing at a compound annual growth rate of 31,6% over the next 5 years according to Mordor Intelligence.