Deque's presence in Ann Arbor has been growing both organically and rapidly in the last year. The software firm has doubled its local staff, hiring 13 people. It now has 25 of its 80 employees based in Ann Arbor, which is up from six two years ago.
"People love Michigan," says Preety Kumar, CEO of
Deque. "They keep wanting to relocate there."
Deque's software makes websites more accessible to people with disabilities. The idea is to tap into larger markets by making a digital process accessible to everyone. For instance, Deque's products and services make it easier for blind people to access popular websites. Check out more of Deque's accessibility success stories
here.
The 15-year-old company has experienced a significant spike in the demand for its services over the last year. It was able to attract a dozen new customers in 2013. As of July, it has landed 21 new customers for this year. Among those new customers, many of them are in the financial services, e-commerce, education technology, and aviation sectors.
"Airlines are definitely warming up to it," Kumar says.
Which has led to a spike in growth in the Ann Arbor office. The Virginia-based company has had a presence in Ann Arbor for years. It’s CTO lives in Ann Arbor. Today it has 25 people in the office and Kumar expects that number to keep growing at an aggressive pace.
"We continue to add good people to the team," Kumar says. "Right now our biggest bottleneck is us. The pipeline is healthier than ever."
Source: Preety Kumar, CEO of Deque
Writer: Jon Zemke
Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.
Enjoy this story?
Sign up for free solutions-based reporting in your inbox each week.