Social media company Pinterest is approaching USD 1 Billion in ad revenue as it pushes for an

IPO in mid-2019 according to people familiar with the matter.

The Company hit USD 500 Million in sales in 2017 and almost double that this year, according to sources close to the Company. Pinterest, known for its popularity among fashion and beauty brands, with 200 Million monthly active users, found success with its mobile ads. Trades on the secondary market value Pinterest between USD 13 Billion and USD 15 Billion, up from USD 12.3 Billion from the last financing round in June 2017.

Pinterest users pin items they like so friends and followers can see curated lists of subjects such

as recipes, clothing, household goods, and places to travel. This provides valuable information

with targeted data of consumer interest. President of Havas Media Group, Shane Ankeney,

stated, “People are pinning literally what they are interested in. We use it as a huge insights

engine.”

Currently Google and Facebook control a combined 57% of U.S. digital ad spending of a USD 88 Billion market from 2017 according to eMarketer. So far nobody has been able to dethrone the two top firms in competition. Pinterest has struggled to do well in digital advertising with its

goal to reach a milestone of USD 1 Billion, as it had leaked financial documents reported by

TechCrunch in 2015 that showed it was initially projecting sales of USD 2.8 Billion by 2018.

Vice President and Group Director of Social Strategy at Digitas, Billy Boulia, said travel and financial companies are experimenting on Pinterest with advertisers. People familiar with the Company say that Pinterest has recently found its footing in the past year.

Pinterest Chief Executive Officer, Ben Silbermann, said in private meetings he sees a big

opportunity for e-commerce. Additionally, a 2016 Internet Trends Report analysts said that 55% of Pinterest users were using the site to find and shop for products relative to 12% for Facebook

and Instagram and 9% for Twitter. Pinterest also hired Francoise Brougher, a previous top

executive at Square and ad exec at Google, to be its first Chief Operating Officer in Februrary.

Both executives have work to do for Pinterest as it expects to grow and go public in 2019.