SINGAPORE: Online marketplace Carousell announced the opening of its new regional headquarters in Singapore at LaunchPad @ one-north on Friday( Sep 22 ).
Group CEO and co-founder Quek Siu Rui stated that the business is still on track to success as it enters its next decade and is concentrating on current markets.
He added that the company’s primary focus right now is integrating them into the Carousell system.” Over the past year, we’ve been extremely busy making quite a few mergers ,” he said.
” Now that we can only be laser-focused on implementation, we’re so grateful to be so well capitalized.” The business continues to be” slowly optimistic” and cautious with its expenditures, he continued.
Since its founding in Singapore in 2012, Carousell has practices in eight different countries: Southeast Asia, India, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. In 2021, it joined the” unicorn” group of start-ups with a market value of over US$ 1 billion.
The party, according to Carousell, has 80 million fresh entries each year and tens of millions of monthly active users.
Carousell was one of the many tech companies that implemented global & nbsp, cost-cutting layoffs following the pandemic, releasing 10 % of its total headcount, or roughly 110 people, by the end of 2022.
Mr. Quek stated on Friday that the layoffs were a hard but” really deliberate decision to focus on some essential priorities and develop an enduring company.”
Indian electronics re-commerce program Laku6 and regional second-hand clothing retailer Refash were among Carousell’s acquisitions next year.
According to a press release from the company, the new office, known as Carousell Campus, unites different subsidiaries into one location and integrates their capacities for product authentication and inspection.
This includes inspections for the & nbsp, a Carousell Certified program that was introduced earlier this year and enables customers to purchase used goods that have undergone quality and authenticity checks.
Before products are sold in Carousell standard stores in Singapore, authorized partners inspect and authenticate them in accordance with the program’s groups and nbsp, such as vehicles, comfort bags, mobile phones, and sneakers.
Staff demonstrated how they distinguish between fake and real comfort bags and sunglasses during a press visit to the office, and they examined used cellular phones using artificial intelligence technology.
Early this year, Carousell even introduced Singpass identification verification for ads in specific classes, such as home, to address issues with trust and confidence.
According to Mr. Quek, the organization is considering adding for checks to the ticket category and mandating that ticket sellers undergo Singpass verification before they can record.
Through its” Buy” button, which was introduced earlier this year, Carousell also introduced escrow payments and additional buyer protections.
The biggest obstacles preventing prospective buyers and sellers of used goods are trust and comfort, and that’s really what we’re trying to do over the next ten years, according to Mr. Quek.
With its return to LaunchPad @ one-north, Carousell hopes to aid in the development of Singapore’s start-up eco-system, he continued, through partnerships with regional startups and small businesses.