Karrot Market
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2015
- HeadquartersSeoul, South Korea
- Headcount251–500
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What Karrot Market does
Karrot Market, founded in 2015 in South Korea as Danggeun Market (also branded Daangn), operates a mobile-first hyperlocal marketplace that connects neighbors within an approximately 50 KM radius to buy and sell used goods, with categories spanning furniture, electronics, fashion, vehicles, and household items. The platform is built around location-based neighborhood matching, identity verification (including biometric), AI-driven fraud detection and content moderation, in-app chat, and a planned proprietary payment service called Karrot Pay that will enable escrow-style transactions. The company distributes through iOS and Android apps and regional web properties (karrotmarket.com for the US, ca.karrotmarket.com for Canada), with North American operations run through Karrot Canada Corp., headquartered in Toronto.
Karrot monetizes via transaction facilitation, advertising, and the planned Karrot Pay service, while marketing its core listing flow as free. The company is shifting strategically from a transactional marketplace toward a community-led model, organizing offline events (game nights, French fries meetups), running a Karrot Creator Community program, and executing brand partnerships (McDonald's Korea, Heinz) and a civic partnership with Busan Metropolitan City. It targets South Korean single-person households (8.05 million in 2024, 36.1% of all households), budget-conscious consumers, and hyperlocal community members in both Korea and selected North American markets.
The company has raised approximately $235 million across disclosed funding rounds, including a $162 million Series D in August 2021 at a $2.7 billion post-money valuation led by DST Global, with Softbank Vision Fund, Goodwater Capital, and Kakao Ventures among the investor base. Its five co-founders, including co-CEO Gary Kim, remain in place, and the company employs 251-500 people across its Seoul and Toronto operations.
Karrot Market firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Karrot Market
- Legal name
- Karrot Canada Corp.
- Website
- https://karrotmarket.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2015
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 251–500 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Karrot Market industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Online Marketplace
- NAICS
- General Merchandise Retailers (455)
- SIC
- Retail-Variety Stores (5331)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Online Collectibles Marketplaces & Auction Retail (CRALAGAO)
Keywords
Where Karrot Market is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Seoul
- HQ country
- South Korea
- HQ region
- Asia
Offices1 record
Markets served
Karrot Market business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Marketplace Transactions: The platform enables local buying and selling of used goods between neighbors. While the tagline states 'buy and sell for free,' the company generates revenue through transaction facilitation services including escrow payments.
- Karrot Pay (Payment Services): Planned proprietary payment service that will enable secure in-app transactions, potentially generating revenue through transaction processing fees.
- Advertising and Promotional Services: The platform uses cookies and similar tracking technologies for marketing and advertising purposes, suggesting advertising as a revenue stream.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Others | Free peer-to-peer marketplace listing |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels3 records
Karrot Market product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Karrot Market operates a hyperlocal mobile and web marketplace that connects neighbors to buy and sell used items (furniture, electronics, fashion, vehicles, home goods) within a defined neighborhood radius. The platform is free for users to list and browse, monetizes via transaction facilitation (Karrot Pay) and advertising, and supplements transactions with offline community events and brand partnerships to drive engagement.
Product overview
Karrot Market operates as a hyperlocal peer-to-peer marketplace connecting neighbors for buying and selling used items. The platform is available as both a mobile application and web service, functioning as a single unified product with geographic-based browsing, real-time chat between buyers and sellers, and a neighborhood-centric interface. The parent company Danggeun Market is also developing Karrot Pay, an integrated payment service to facilitate in-app transactions.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Karrot Pay: Payment service being developed by the company to facilitate transactions on its marketplace platform.
Products and services
- Karrot Market (mobile app and web marketplace) Hyperlocal mobile and web marketplace platform enabling individuals to list, discover, and transact for used items (furniture, electronics, fashion, vehicles, home goods, and more) with neighbors within a defined geographic area, generally within a maximum 50 KM radius. Includes user identity verification, in-app chat, neighborhood-based browsing, and free listing/browsing for end users.
Companies that use Karrot Market
Customer profileSegments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Karrot Market technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability1 record
Feature4 records
Karrot Market partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- HeinzcoreDaangn/Karrot is planning a ketchup-themed event with Heinz on April 7 in Seoul's Euljiro district as part of their community-building initiatives and brand partnership program.
- McDonald's KoreacoreDaangn/Karrot has partnered with McDonald's Korea to organize offline community events and promotional activities. The partnership is part of Karrot's strategy to expand beyond transactional services by facilitating offline community gatherings.
- Busan Metropolitan CityminorDaangn/Karrot is collaborating with Busan Metropolitan City on neighborhood wellness initiatives, demonstrating the platform's expansion into civic community engagement beyond commerce.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Karrot Market competitors and assessment
Company assessmentRegional players
- Wallapop: Spain-headquartered hyperlocal marketplace for used goods with strong presence in Southern Europe. Comparable product model and hyperlocal mechanics, though geographically focused on Spain/Italy rather than competing directly in Karrot's North American markets.
- OLX: Global classifieds and marketplace platform with strong presence in emerging markets (India, Brazil, Eastern Europe). Operates comparable local listings model but is geographically adjacent rather than directly overlapping with Karrot's primary markets.
Direct peers
- Poshmark: Social marketplace for secondhand fashion and home goods with strong community/social features. Comparable peer-to-peer resale model with transaction fees, though focused more narrowly on fashion than Karrot's broad multi-category approach.
- Carousell: Singapore-headquartered C2C marketplace for secondhand goods across Southeast Asia, Hong Kong, and Taiwan. Closest peer to Karrot in terms of Asian origin, mobile-first product, and broad multi-category used goods focus.
- Depop: Social-first peer-to-peer marketplace for secondhand fashion, particularly popular with Gen Z. Comparable mobile-first resale model with social/community features, now owned by Etsy.
- Vinted: Europe-headquartered C2C marketplace for secondhand fashion with strong community engagement. Comparable peer-to-peer resale mechanics and community-led growth, though narrower category focus and primarily European geography.
- OfferUp: US-headquartered hyperlocal mobile marketplace for buying and selling used goods locally. Operates with similar peer-to-peer mechanics, neighborhood-based browsing, and trust features (including identity verification), making it Karrot's closest direct US competitor.
- Mercari: Japan-origin publicly traded C2C marketplace for secondhand goods with US operations ('Mercari' US). Comparable product model (mobile-first, used goods, transaction fees via Mercari Payments), though with a take-rate model that Karrot has not yet matched.
Broad incumbents
- Facebook Marketplace: Meta's bundled hyperlocal marketplace leveraging the global social graph. While not a standalone product, it offers free local listings to billions of users and represents the dominant distribution threat in Karrot's US/Canada expansion markets.
- Craigslist: Long-standing classifieds platform with deep US hyperlocal presence across hundreds of cities. Operates a different UX (listings-based, no payments) but is a direct substitute for users seeking local used-goods transactions.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Karrot Market social profiles
Digital presenceKarrot Market financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Karrot Market leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles5 records
Karrot Market funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds5 records
Investors9 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Karrot Market M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments1 record
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Karrot Market
What does Karrot Market do?
Karrot Market operates a hyperlocal mobile and web marketplace that connects neighbors to buy and sell used items (furniture, electronics, fashion, vehicles, home goods) within a defined neighborhood radius. The platform is free for users to list and browse, monetizes via transaction facilitation (Karrot Pay) and advertising, and supplements transactions with offline community events and brand partnerships to drive engagement.
Is Karrot Market a public or private company?
Karrot Market is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Karrot Market founded?
Karrot Market was founded in 2015. It employs 251 to 500 people.
Where is Karrot Market based?
Karrot Market is headquartered in Seoul, South Korea, in the Asia region.
How does Karrot Market make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Marketplace Transactions are the primary driver. The others are karrot Pay (Payment Services) and advertising and Promotional Services.
Who are Karrot Market's main competitors?
Regional players on record are Wallapop and OLX. Direct peers are Poshmark, Carousell, Depop, Vinted, OfferUp and Mercari. Broad incumbents are Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist.
Does Karrot Market have an API?
No public API is recorded for Karrot Market.
What industry is Karrot Market in?
Karrot Market's product category is Online Marketplace. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRALAGAO, Online Collectibles Marketplaces & Auction Retail. Its NAICS code is 455 and its SIC code is 5331.