Stuff app LetGo joins the “unicorn club”
General classifieds app LetGo has been valued at $1 billion U.S., making it the newest member of the “unicorn club” as it closes the gap between it and main U.S. rival OfferUp. (Also see CNBC's take on it.)
Marketplace
Austrian start-up rolls out Refurbed.de in Germany
Refurbed.de, a recommerce site in the niche for refurbished electronics, launched in Germany. The platform brings together sellers of high-quality refurbished devices with consumers looking for discounted, high-tech merchandise. The site focuses mainly on computers, tablets, and mobile phones.
Wallapop and Correos partner for shipping service
Barcelona-based mobile marketplace Wallapop has announced a partnership with Correos, the Spanish postal service. The new agreement will allow sellers to use Correos to ship items within mainland Spain.
Schibsted bundles all classifieds in single division
Schibsted re-organized its business into two operational divisions, labeled Marketplaces and Media, and will move IT workers from the erstwhile division Product and Technology to the two divisions. The division Product and Technology won’t vanish completely, but most IT workers will be allocated to the two operational divisions Media and Marketplaces, the company said in a news release.
Zhuan Zhuan to launch niche site with Foxconn
Zhuan Zhuan (转转), the used goods transaction platform created by classifieds giant 58.com (NYSE: WUBA), has signed a cooperative partnership with Taiwanese electronics manufacturer Foxconn. The two sides announced that they will be working toward a creating an online marketplace for used smartphones.
Data the key to beating Amazon – Jon Macdonald
Trade Me (NZX: TME) chief executive Jon Macdonald reckons its treasure trove of consumer data and knowledge of local customers will be the keys to beating e-commerce giant Amazon when it launches in Australia later this year.
Amazon postpones launch in Brazil to 2018
Amazon postponed its launch in Brazil to 2018, local investment bank BTG Pactual reportedly said. Brazil is Latin America’s largest e-commerce and classifieds market by revenue, according to estimates of the AIM Group.
AdPerfect joins reconstituted Local Media Consortium
AdPerfect is the latest partner to join the reconstituted Local Media Consortium (LMC). AdPerfect will bring its four key products --- online obituaries, classifieds, celebrations and retail ads --- to the LMC’s 1,700 media sites in the U.S..
Indian government promotes c-to-c trading
GlowRoad, a female-focused reseller network, became the first, c-to-c online marketplace in India to raise venture-capital funding ($2 million U.S.) in a Series A round from Accel Partners, reported Economic Times.
In France, LeBonCoin launches messenger app
Schibsted-owned LeBonCoin, France’s dominant horizontal classified site, just launched a messenger for its IOS app.