Partnership Strategies for Product Growth and Retention

A GrowthPad Event Recap

On November 26th, we hosted an incredible GrowthPad session in Toronto featuring Laura Stanley, Global Partnerships Lead at Pexels (a Canva company) — a deep dive into how strategic partnerships fuel product growth, global scaling, and long-term competitive advantage.

The room was packed with founders, product builders, and growth operators — and the conversation went far beyond surface-level “collabs.” Laura pulled the curtain back on how Pexels built one of the world’s most recognisable creator brands, how the Canva acquisition transformed their trajectory, and what real partnerships look like when they drive billions of design outcomes.

Here are the biggest lessons.

**1. Partnerships Should Extend Your Product, Not Market It**

Most early-stage founders think of partnerships as:

exchanging logos
cross-promos
or BD decks gathering dust

Laura emphasized something different:

“A great partnership makes your product more useful today than it was yesterday — without needing a marketing campaign.”

At Pexels, the highest-ROI partnerships weren’t flashy co-branded campaigns.
They were functional integrations where creators could:

upload images directly from partner tools
expand distribution instantly
access creator perks that improved their workflow

In other words, the product grew because the ecosystem grew.

Lesson for founders:
If the partnership doesn’t improve the user experience, it’s not a growth lever — it’s a distraction.

2. Solve Real Problems for Your Partners

Laura shared one of the most important truths:

“Partnerships break when you think about what you want. They work when you obsess over what theyneed.”

Two examples from the session:

Offering creators exposure wasn’t enough — Pexels built monetizable, trackable distribution routes for them.
Agencies didn’t just want free stock — they wanted scalable workflow tools that plugged directly into their client deliverables.

When Pexels solved partner problems, the partnerships became sticky.
When Canva acquired them, this philosophy only deepened.

3. Acquisition is Not the Finish Line — It’s the Starting Line

Hearing Laura talk about Canva was a masterclass in post-acquisition growth culture.

The big insights:

Autonomy fuels innovation. Pexels was never swallowed whole; Canva intentionally let them keep their brand, culture, and speed.
Ecosystem amplification changes everything. Pexels suddenly had distribution to 190+ countries, 200M+ users — a scale impossible to achieve alone.
Partnership DNA integrates into product DNA. Canva viewed Pexels not just as a product asset but as a creator-powered ecosystem advantage.

For anyone dreaming of an acquisition:

“The right parent company makes your superpower stronger — the wrong one makes it disappear.”

4. Partnerships Are a Retention Strategy, Not Just a Growth Strategy

This was one of the most unexpected takeaways.

We usually think of partnerships as top-of-funnel.
But Laura explained how creator ecosystems and distribution partners become a moat around retention:

Creators stay when their content distribution grows.
Brands stay when integrations reduce workflow friction.
Users stay when they have access to richer content libraries.

Partnerships compound.
Retention compounds even more.

5. Founder Mindset: How to Build Partnerships When You’re Nobody

The Q&A went into the gritty reality:

“How do I get partnerships when I’m small, unknown, or early stage?”

Laura gave founders a playbook:

Start with micro-partnerships — creators, small tools, communities.
Bring value first.
Don’t pitch — prototype.
Don’t ask for a ‘yes’ — ask for 10 minutes.
Build momentum before going after big logos.

The best line:

“Partnerships aren’t built with emails. They’re built with proof.”

6. The Human Side of Partnerships

The most refreshing part of the night was watching Laura speak about people:

Trust
Consistency
Long-term thinking
Not over-optimising short-term
Showing up even when there’s no immediate upside

The room felt it.
Partnerships aren’t business tactics — they’re relationships at scale.

A Huge Thank You

A massive thank you to Laura Stanley for sharing such transparent and tactical insights.

And thank you to every founder, operator, and growth leader who joined us.
GrowthPad is building a community of people who want to learn from the best — and elevate the entire Toronto ecosystem.

Here are some photos from the event: