Creating a world of relevant advertising without compromising users privacy 

“I just wanted a better advertising system.” That’s the simplest way, Rui de Freitas could possibly explain the idea behind C Wire. The root for this desire lies in frustrating times working in media advertising, that was characterized by unfair competition, intransparency, and distrust in the sector. The start of new regulations and the enforcement of privacy measures by tech giants such as Apple were also crucial for sparking the idea and confidence, that a better advertising system could take over the existing ones.

C Wire's development coincided with significant changes in the digital advertising landscape, including Google's decision to stop identifying individuals. “People were asking for more privacy, leading to the removal of third-party cookies. The industry's response was to replace cookies with identifiers based on emails, but we saw a different approach” says Rui. C Wire’s vision is to create a world of relevant advertising without compromising user privacy. “We are the only ones not using third-party cookies or user identifiers. Other providers are very reliant on these cookies, and we are best positioned to deliver relevance at scale in the cookieless future.”

The Beginning and Growth of C Wire

Reflecting on the early days, Rui describes the development of C Wire from an idea to a thriving business. Together with Chris Morgan, while working at an AI & NLP fintech startup, Rui laid the foundation. “We looked for a technical co-founder and found Yannick, who had worked with me at Tamedia. All his past experience brought all the necessary know-how for this exact project” Rui recounts. While Rui focused on product & operations, Tom, the fourth co-founder, joined the team for strategic vision and fundraising.

“We recruited key talents and expanded our team. Brick by brick, we built the ecosystem we have now. We started with one ad format and one approach, continuously improving our models” Rui explains. The product side kept iterating, though navigating international expansion was challenging. “I think by now we found the go-to-market approach for every market, meaning we can scale internationally now.”

Building a strong team makes a resilient company

But when building a startup not everything goes round ever. “You need to cope well with things not going your way. Often, founders are exposed to bad news while good things happen in the background” Rui reflects. When COVID-19 arrived, the team was challenged financially. “We had just hired tech experts on the back of a commitment from an early client for the EURO Cup in June, but ultimately no campaign could run. The founders had to work part-time to avoid layoffs in the tech team, which they kept incentivized with an Employee Stock Ownership Plan,” Rui recalls. Rui is particularly proud of the talented employees C Wire has attracted. Fortunately, C Wire has been doing a great job in recruiting talented people who take ownership and are dedicated to the shared vision. “I am proud of the team we have built.”

Another significant success moment was working with clients such as Miele. “We started with small use cases with Miele and by now our tech is used in many different campaigns achieving great results by supporting their brand positioning on specific topic spaces” Rui proudly shares.

In the coming months, C Wire will focus on gaining market traction in France and Germany and developing new product features to drive more scale and engagement. “A crucial success factor will be achieving market relevance in new countries,” says Rui.