Start Today (TSE:3092), a company that provides Japan’s largest fashion commerce site Zozotown, announced today that it has acquired e-commerce solution provider Aratana.
Aratana was launched with the aim to create new jobs for 1,000 people in Miyazaki, a coastal city on Japan’s Kyushu Island. Since its launch in 2007, the company has served more than 800 Japanese companies to develop their e-commerce sites.
Meanwhile, Start Today has been helping apparel brands develop e-commerce sites in addition to operating Zozotown, Start Today’s flagship fashion commerce site. Through the partnership, Aratana will help Start Today offer their e-commerce site development services to apparel brands.
As reported last year, Aratana is comprised of more than 100 engineers, with a 24-year-old security hacker as CTO at the head of the list. The company will maintain its independent business operations with their personnel structure unchanged after the acquisition.
Start Today acquired DIY e-commerce solution startup Stores.jp in 2013. It will be interesting to see how the tie-up will bring synergy to both companies.
Translated by Masaru Ikeda Edited by Kurt Hanson Proofread by “Tex” Pomeroy
See the original story in Japanese. Livesense (TSE:6054), a Tokyo-based Internet media company known for its job search site with the business model that rewards users when they land a new job, announced today that it will acquire a 71.7% stake in Tokyo-based e-commerce fulfillment company Waja for 400 million yen ($3.3 million). According to Livesense’s statement, this acquisition will help expand their business to the consumer-to-consumer and international e-commerce service sectors. See also: Japanese CEOs from Mixi, Livesense on developing new businesses Waja was launched in 2003 by former Andersen Consulting (now Accenture) employee Koji Koyasu. They are operating three marketplaces: Waja (selling fashion items from overseas markets), Reason Outlet (selling seconds clothes for reasonable prices), and Fashion Charity Project (collecting unused luxury brand items selling them for charity). Translated by Masaru Ikeda Edited by Kurt Hanson Proofread by “Tex” Pomeroy
Livesense (TSE:6054), a Tokyo-based Internet media company known for its job search site with the business model that rewards users when they land a new job, announced today that it will acquire a 71.7% stake in Tokyo-based e-commerce fulfillment company Waja for 400 million yen ($3.3 million). According to Livesense’s statement, this acquisition will help expand their business to the consumer-to-consumer and international e-commerce service sectors.
Waja was launched in 2003 by former Andersen Consulting (now Accenture) employee Koji Koyasu. They are operating three marketplaces: Waja (selling fashion items from overseas markets), Reason Outlet (selling seconds clothes for reasonable prices), and Fashion Charity Project (collecting unused luxury brand items selling them for charity).
Translated by Masaru Ikeda Edited by Kurt Hanson Proofread by “Tex” Pomeroy
See the original story in Japanese. As we approach the end of the Japanese fiscal year, it’s quite understandable that there are plenty of accounting solutions being launched these days, but we are also receiving many updates about the launch of web services for human resources. So human resource technologies, or HR-Tech for short, may be one of this year’s biggest trends along with fintech (financial technologies) and IoT (Internet of Things). Tokyo-based Atrae, previously known as I&G Partners, recently launched a new service for “mining” human resources in partnership with Japanese big data analysis company Brain Pad (TSE:3655). The service is called TalentBase and provides companies with easier access to a pool of talents by leveraging artificial intelligence and big data analytics. When one signs up for TalentBase, one’s profile will be created on the platform including quantitative scores of skills from social, business, and engineering aspects, based on available information associated with the Facebook account. If one’s Facebook account is associated with any of the Japanese knowledge-sharing services such as Qiita, Github, and Creww, more accurate information will be accordingly provided to one’s business profile on the TalentBase platform. TalentBase will create profiles for Facebook friends that one grants permission for third-party access to, so that the number of talent profiles will show exponential growth as the number of registered…
As we approach the end of the Japanese fiscal year, it’s quite understandable that there are plenty of accounting solutions being launched these days, but we are also receiving many updates about the launch of web services for human resources. So human resource technologies, or HR-Tech for short, may be one of this year’s biggest trends along with fintech (financial technologies) and IoT (Internet of Things).
Tokyo-based Atrae, previously known as I&G Partners, recently launched a new service for “mining” human resources in partnership with Japanese big data analysis company Brain Pad (TSE:3655). The service is called TalentBase and provides companies with easier access to a pool of talents by leveraging artificial intelligence and big data analytics.
When one signs up for TalentBase, one’s profile will be created on the platform including quantitative scores of skills from social, business, and engineering aspects, based on available information associated with the Facebook account. If one’s Facebook account is associated with any of the Japanese knowledge-sharing services such as Qiita, Github, and Creww, more accurate information will be accordingly provided to one’s business profile on the TalentBase platform.
TalentBase will create profiles for Facebook friends that one grants permission for third-party access to, so that the number of talent profiles will show exponential growth as the number of registered users increases.
On the other hand, the platform will learn the preference of companies seeking employees so they will keep choosing candidates that have the specifications required. Based on vectorized data of people’s business skills, the platform will choose and present the most recommended set of candidates from the pool who may satisfy the requirements for each of these companies.
Atrae director Toshiyuki Oka explained:
We have been prototyping TalentBase behind operating JobShare, our previous talent-seeking platform. As we were able to validate that it was functioning to some extent, we decided to launch a new platform on a revenue-sharing basis with BrainPad, the leading company in the Japanese data analytics sector.
Some functions from JobShare were incorporated into the TalentBase platform, where companies can use functions like job posting, job applications management and results screening for free. If a company wants to find people who are likely to match their needs or receive recommendations from the talent pool, they will be charged a monthly fee of 100,000 yen (or about $820) regardless of how many jobs they post or how many candidates they contact.
While many of the companies using the platform will be startups or IT companies, as a matter of fact all users having their Facebook accounts can create their profile on the platform, hence business and occupational categories are not limited. Atrae wants to acquire 5 to 10 companies using the platform for their hiring platform, in addition to increasing the volume of available user profiles for 10 million people by the end of April.
As DeNA’s venture capitalist James Riney recently pointed out in his blog post, we may not be very good at filling their resume without advisory assistance or appealing their potentials due to one’s own characteristics. In that sense, the trend in tactics for hiring recently entails use of the data-driven approach and artificial intelligence. This may suit the mentality of a typical Japanese person, as gathered from moves by services such as Talentio and Grooves.
Translated by Taijiro Takeda Edited by Masaru Ikeda and “Tex” Pomeroy
See the original story in Japanese. Japan’s Gunosy, a Tokyo-based company behind a news curation app under the same name, submitted an IPO application to the Tokyo Stock Exchange and was approved today. The company will be listed on the TSE Mothers Market on 28 April with plans to offer 3.5 million shares for public subscription and to sell 886,500 shares in over-allotment options for a total of 2.41 million shares. The underwriting will be led by Nomura Securities. Its share price range will be released on 8 April, bookbuilding is scheduled to start on 20 April. According to the consolidated statement as of May 2014, they posted a revenue of 359 million Japanese yen ($3.3 million) and an ordinary loss of 1.37 billion yen ($11.4 million). Gunosy was launched in October 2011 by three graduate students at the University of Tokyo, and was incorporated as a joint-stock company in 2012. Serial entrepreneur and investor Shinji Kimura came on to help manage the company as co-CEO in 2013 but subsequently stepped down last September. According to TechCrunch Japan, Kimura’s departure is to avoid the risk of breaching the non-compete clause, which requires him to refrain from competing with other companies…
Japan’s Gunosy, a Tokyo-based company behind a news curation app under the same name, submitted an IPO application to the Tokyo Stock Exchange and was approved today. The company will be listed on the TSE Mothers Market on 28 April with plans to offer 3.5 million shares for public subscription and to sell 886,500 shares in over-allotment options for a total of 2.41 million shares. The underwriting will be led by Nomura Securities.
Its share price range will be released on 8 April, bookbuilding is scheduled to start on 20 April. According to the consolidated statement as of May 2014, they posted a revenue of 359 million Japanese yen ($3.3 million) and an ordinary loss of 1.37 billion yen ($11.4 million).
Gunosy was launched in October 2011 by three graduate students at the University of Tokyo, and was incorporated as a joint-stock company in 2012. Serial entrepreneur and investor Shinji Kimura came on to help manage the company as co-CEO in 2013 but subsequently stepped down last September. According to TechCrunch Japan, Kimura’s departure is to avoid the risk of breaching the non-compete clause, which requires him to refrain from competing with other companies in the same sector.
See the original story in Japanese. According to the Japan National Tourist Organization (JNTO), the number of foreign visitors to Japan hit a record high of 13.4 million in 2014. The fact is that the opportunity to see more foreign visitors not only in Tokyo but also in rural travel destinations in Japan has increased. Tokyo-based Lifull TraveRing recently launched a mobile app under the same name, looking to help these foreign visitors better connect with locals. The app is available for iOS on AppStore in more than 130 countries worldwide. Benefit to both sides There have been several services connecting travelers and locals in the former’s destination with each others since before, but what’s unique about the Lifull TraveRing app is that it allows users to participate both as a traveler and as a local. Using the app, one can communicate with locals at destinations during the trip while communicating with travelers in one’s hometown. Lifull TraveRing CEO Yuko Akiyama explained: We want travelers to enjoy communicating with locals in a way that they haven’t experienced in the past trips. On the other side, we want locals to feel happy by providing visitors hospitality in daily lives regardless of having no special skill or knowhow. She told us that they have been receiving sign-ups from both travelers and…
Tokyo-based Lifull TraveRing recently launched a mobile app under the same name, looking to help these foreign visitors better connect with locals. The app is available for iOS on AppStore in more than 130 countries worldwide.
Benefit to both sides
There have been several services connecting travelers and locals in the former’s destination with each others since before, but what’s unique about the Lifull TraveRing app is that it allows users to participate both as a traveler and as a local. Using the app, one can communicate with locals at destinations during the trip while communicating with travelers in one’s hometown.
Lifull TraveRing CEO Yuko Akiyama explained:
We want travelers to enjoy communicating with locals in a way that they haven’t experienced in the past trips. On the other side, we want locals to feel happy by providing visitors hospitality in daily lives regardless of having no special skill or knowhow.
She told us that they have been receiving sign-ups from both travelers and locals almost at the same ratio. When it comes to this kind of apps connecting travels and locals in travel destinations, many of us are likely to think these are intended for overseas trips or foreign visitors. But the fact is that there are an increasing number of Japanese locals using the app who want to offer travel tips about where they live, especially in Tokyo and Kyoto where the company held app release parties.
Keeping in touch even after travel
We were told that the Lifull TraveRing have been focused on how to give users intuitiveness and a sense of security in the app development process. As a result of their effort to simplify the interface, users can choose a hobby in their profile section simply by tapping on the screen as well as express their gratitude to other users for meaningful communication by sending a ‘Thank U!’ sticker. The number of received ‘Thank U!’ stickers will be displayed in a user’s profile section, so it will work as an indicator for his or her trustworthiness.
Furthermore, a user has to start with Facebook authentication but can’t create an account without a certain number of Facebook friends so that it gives users a sense of security in meeting up with new people on the platform. To assure complete security, the company has also provided users with functions to block and report spam or abuse in the app, just in case.
Akiyama elaborated:
With a mission aiming to connect people in the world with each others through travels, our app allows users to enjoy communicating with locals at your destination, not only during the visit but also after it. So while you can speak with locals during your trip, you can provide them hospitality when they visit your hometown. We aim to create a type of cycle in this way.
Finding the goal of life
Lifull TraveRing CEO Yuko Akiyama
Lifull TraveRing is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Next (TSE:2120), the company behind Japan’s largest property search portal Home’s. Lifull TraveRing’s Akiyama attended an overseas training program at the company as the first case from their female employees, and this experience greatly encouraged her to develop the app.
She visited local companies, universities and governmental offices in Finland during the program, where she saw that such a tiny country with just 5.5 million people has gotten over the economic crisis and various startups keep developing new services for the global market.
Akiyama added:
I was moved through interactions with locals in Finland, and I could find the goal of my life thanks to them. We want to help more travelers and more locals connect with each others, aiming to give them wonderful experiences through travels which may change their outlook on life. In order to realize this goal, I want to take great care in developing the service.
XZ (pronounced “closet”) is an online fashion community launched back in September 2014, aiming to help young women enjoy wearing more variety of clothes. In this space, we have recently seen launches of some similar services, such as Primode giving users chat-based outfit recommendations as well as subscription-based fashion item rental service AirCloset. But XZ is distinguished for giving users opportunities to mix and match new items with the clothes they already have in their closet. Almost a half of their users are females aged from 18 to 26. More than 130,000 fashion items and 22,000 outfit patterns have been uploaded from users to date, increasing by 1,000 new items every day. While women have many clothes in their closet, they are selective about what to wear from among them because they don’t want colleagues to think that they wear the same clothes all times. The XZ platform addresses these worries in their daily lives, helping them find the best outfit using the clothes already owned – leveraging wisdoms of crowds via social media, rather than encouraging them to buy a new one. Yoshihiro Ogita, CEO of the platform’s operating company Standing Ovation, explained: In view of consumer behaviors in…
XZ (pronounced “closet”) is an online fashion community launched back in September 2014, aiming to help young women enjoy wearing more variety of clothes. In this space, we have recently seen launches of some similar services, such as Primode giving users chat-based outfit recommendations as well as subscription-based fashion item rental service AirCloset. But XZ is distinguished for giving users opportunities to mix and match new items with the clothes they already have in their closet.
Almost a half of their users are females aged from 18 to 26. More than 130,000 fashion items and 22,000 outfit patterns have been uploaded from users to date, increasing by 1,000 new items every day. While women have many clothes in their closet, they are selective about what to wear from among them because they don’t want colleagues to think that they wear the same clothes all times.
The XZ platform addresses these worries in their daily lives, helping them find the best outfit using the clothes already owned – leveraging wisdoms of crowds via social media, rather than encouraging them to buy a new one.
Yoshihiro Ogita, CEO of the platform’s operating company Standing Ovation, explained:
In view of consumer behaviors in fashion, most conventional services are centered on what users do prior to new purchases or how users should handle clothes no longer used. While e-commerce sites and fashion-focused social networks based on snapshot sharing fulfill the former role, peer-to-peer marketplaces or flea market apps are utilized for the latter purpose. But we help users find how to enjoy themselves more with the clothes they have.
Making good outfits even with inexpensive fashion items
XZ’s calendar function
Every user uploads about 30 fashion items to the XZ platform on average, which is extremely higher than was expected by the Standing Ovation team, which foresaw an average of 10 items at most. According to Ogita, 11% of these items are used for creating new outfits on the platform, where users are some 10 times more active than most user-generated content sharing platforms; this is because users post articles based on their belongings.
Ogita was surprised to see a variety of fashion items ranging from fast-fashion to high-end labels have been uploaded on the platform. Furthermore, many items used for creating outfits are from fast-fashion labels. Beyond assumptions that many people don’t want to say they have only fast-fashion items, users are enjoying highlighting their skills and sensibilities that allow them to create cute outfits using inexpensive items.
They recently launched the calendar function, enabling users to remind which outfit they have chosen each working day. This will encourage users to register more fashion items on the platform while contributing to an improved user retention rate. Furthermore, the lab team is developing a new feature that notifies users when their items are used to create new outfits, or helping a user find other users that she can share her taste with. Looking ahead, the platform will be enhanced to let like-minded users connect with each others based on attributes like preferable brands or age brackets.
Ogita added:
We have received much feedback from users. Based on that, we will roll out a new feature in April, to help users find the best outfit from their items for a first date with someone.
Monetization strategies
Multiple outfits created with the same fashion item.
Although initially a C2C (consumer-to-consumer) marketplace launch was planned, the team is focused on community-building reflecting user feedback now. The uploaded items are what users prefer to keep wearing and not intended for sale to someone else.
An analogy comes to mind: when the social shopping was all the fuss, typical social
network services failed miserably in making money upon integration with e-commerce platforms. This happened as user mindsets on social network platforms differ from those on e-commerce platforms. Users visit a social network service to communicate with friends, a completely different mindset when buying something. The same holds for XZ.
The Standing Ovation team will allow fashion brands to create their own closet on the platform to monetize. By letting brands publish their new items through an own closet to users while ascertaining how their items are utilized for creating outfits by users. As traffic further increases, they plan to establish an advertising business on the platform too.
This will provide substantial benefit to users because it facilitates new item purchases
while considering outfits with what they already have in their closet. The company has several premium functions, allowing users to sort out items in order of clothing pattern or seek professional advice for better outfits.
Huge potential
XZ users start using the platform because they want to manage their fashion items. Once started, they enjoy discovering new outfits and ideas there. To help more people easily understand this experience, the company offers an additional menu that lets users ask a warehousing company to take and upload pictures of their fashion items.
Ogita is spending much effort to enhance the potential and the convenience of the XZ platform.
If a partnership with a job search portal in the fashion industry is established, employers can check the fashion sense of potential employees by seeing what kind of outfits or clothes they have in their closet, to realize a better matchmaking. If partnered with a leading fashion magazine company, they can help find fashionable girls using XZ as a model audition platform, even in rural areas.
Moreover, if apparel brands can integrate their customer database or purchase history with the XZ platform, they can better serve customers beyond purchases since they can understand how customers use these items by discerning user behaviors on the platform.
Ogita concluded:
Our service is highly connected to users, it is totally about what they have. Not only as a reference, they can also style themselves based on it the next day or perhaps the same day as well. We hope to become a standard for daily-use fashion apps.
Translated by Taijiro Takeda Edited by Masaru Ikeda Proofread by “Tex” Pomeroy
Yukari Mitsuhashi
Takeshi Hirano
Masaru Ikeda
