Curated
Curated is an e-commerce marketplace that connects consumers making high-consideration purchases with domain experts who provide personalized buying guidance, initially focused on premium outdoor and sporting gear and monetized via transaction commissions.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2017
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What Curated does
Curated is a venture-backed e-commerce marketplace founded in 2017 and headquartered in San Francisco that connects consumers making high-consideration purchases with domain experts who provide personalized buying guidance. The platform's initial focus is premium outdoor and sporting goods, where product complexity and price points make expert advice commercially valuable; experts are matched with consumers to advise on technical equipment and earn commissions on resulting sales. The company has raised $141.5M across funding rounds in 2019 and 2021, with a $75M round in November 2021 led by CapitalG (Alphabet's independent growth fund) representing the largest capital event and bringing prior investors Greylock, Forerunner, Backcountry, and Nimble Ventures onto the cap table. Curated cites 300% year-over-year growth as the driver of that round.
The core product is a marketplace platform in which consumers browse and purchase high-value items with expert assistance, monetized via affiliate/transaction commissions on completed sales. In November 2024, Curated launched the 'Lists' feature, enabling experts, influencers, and professionals (including Olympic gold medalist Julia Mancuso) to publish curated product recommendations at scale and earn commissions, effectively extending the marketplace model into a creator-economy content commerce surface. The North Face is a named GTM/brand partner, and the company has stated intent to expand into new product categories beyond outdoor and sporting gear. Curated's revenue model is affiliate/transaction-commission based, with no publicly disclosed pricing for the consumer side of the platform. Leadership comprises co-founders Eduardo Vivas (CEO), Annabel Liu (CTO), Alex Vauthey (CSO), and Peter Ombres (COO), supported by general managers and operations leads; the company employs 101–250 people.
Curated firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Curated
- Legal name
- Curated
- Website
- https://curated.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2017
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- Curated is an e-commerce marketplace that connects consumers making high-consideration purchases with domain experts who provide personalized buying guidance, initially focused on premium outdoor and sporting gear and monetized via transaction commissions.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Curated industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Expert-Guided E-commerce Marketplace
- NAICS
- Sporting Goods, Hobby, Musical Instrument, Book, and Miscellaneous Retailers (459), Hobby, Toy, and Game Retailers (45912)
- SIC
- Retail-Catalog & Mail-Order Houses (5961), Retail-Hobby, Toy & Game Shops (5945)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Sporting Goods & Outdoor Inventory-led Online Retailers (CRAFADAJ)
Keywords
Where Curated is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Markets served
Curated business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Operations
Revenue model
- Expert Commission Revenue: Platform generates revenue through commissions paid to experts who provide product recommendations. Experts receive commissions on sales generated through their curated lists and recommendations.
- Transaction Commission: Facilitates high-consideration product sales with expert guidance, earning commissions on transactions completed through the platform.
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels2 records
Curated product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Curated operates an online marketplace that connects consumers with domain experts who provide personalized buying guidance for high-consideration purchases, primarily in outdoor and sporting goods. Experts, influencers, and pros curate product lists and offer tailored recommendations, earning commissions on sales generated through their guidance. The platform differentiates itself from traditional e-commerce by substituting algorithmic recommendations with human expertise for complex, expensive product categories.
Product overview
Curated operates as a unified e-commerce marketplace platform that connects consumers seeking guidance on high-consideration purchases with domain expert advisors. The core platform enables personalized shopping advice for premium products, while the 'Lists' feature allows experts and influencers to share curated product recommendations and earn commissions on sales.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Curated (E-commerce Marketplace Platform)
- Lists
Quantifiable outcome
- 300% year-over-year growth
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Curated
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Curated technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature2 records
Curated partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- The North FacecoreThe North Face has engaged with Curated's platform, achieving high customer satisfaction and engagement. The partnership demonstrates how major outdoor brands leverage Curated's expert-guided shopping model to reach customers making high-consideration purchases.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Curated competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Backcountry: Online specialty retailer for outdoor and sporting gear, also a prior investor in Curated. Direct vertical competitor with overlapping customer base in premium outdoor gear, though Backcountry is inventory-led rather than expert-guided.
- LTK (formerly rewardStyle): LTK operates a creator-driven commerce platform where influencers share shoppable product recommendations and earn affiliate commissions. Closely comparable to Curated's Lists feature, with a much larger established creator base.
- Stitch Fix: Personal styling service combining human expert curation with e-commerce for apparel. Comparable business model of pairing consumers with domain experts for high-consideration purchase decisions, scaled to a public-company trajectory.
- ShopMy: Creator-commerce platform enabling influencers to monetize product recommendations with affiliate links. Direct competitor to Curated's Lists feature with broader category coverage and significant venture backing.
- Tradesy: Online marketplace for pre-owned luxury goods with curated discovery and trust-oriented buying features. Comparable C2C/marketplace model emphasizing expert curation for high-AOV considered purchases, though in resale rather than new goods.
- Faire: Wholesale marketplace connecting independent retailers with curated brands. Comparable marketplace model with curated-discovery mechanics, though B2B rather than B2C and oriented around discovery rather than expert advice.
- Crutchfield: Long-standing online retailer of audio/video/electronics built around expert advice, detailed product guides, and personalized recommendations for high-consideration purchases. Closest analog to Curated's expert-guided commerce model in a different vertical.
Broad incumbents
- REI Co-op: Cooperative retailer specializing in outdoor gear with knowledgeable staff and gear-expert content. Serves the same premium outdoor consumer segment with overlapping merchandising, though REI is membership-driven and inventory-led rather than marketplace-based.
- Best Buy: Big-box electronics retailer investing heavily in expert-led shopping experiences (in-store advisors, Geek Squad, live expert chat). Represents the scaled version of Curated's high-consideration, expert-guided commerce thesis in a different vertical.
- Amazon (with Expert/Influencer programs): Operates Amazon Live, Influencer Program, and Vine that increasingly layer expert and creator content onto high-consideration product discovery. Represents the existential competitive risk to any expert-guided commerce startup.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Curated social profiles
Digital presenceCurated financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Curated leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles9 records
Curated funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds4 records
Investors5 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Curated M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Curated
What does Curated do?
Curated operates an online marketplace that connects consumers with domain experts who provide personalized buying guidance for high-consideration purchases, primarily in outdoor and sporting goods. Experts, influencers, and pros curate product lists and offer tailored recommendations, earning commissions on sales generated through their guidance. The platform differentiates itself from traditional e-commerce by substituting algorithmic recommendations with human expertise for complex, expensive product categories.
Is Curated a public or private company?
Curated is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Curated founded?
Curated was founded in 2017. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is Curated based?
Curated is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does Curated make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Expert Commission Revenue is the primary driver. The others are transaction Commission.
Who are Curated's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Backcountry, LTK (formerly rewardStyle), Stitch Fix, ShopMy, Tradesy, Faire and Crutchfield. Broad incumbents are REI Co-op, Best Buy and Amazon (with Expert/Influencer programs).
Does Curated have an API?
No public API is recorded for Curated.
What industry is Curated in?
Curated's product category is Expert-Guided E-commerce Marketplace. Its primary akta.pro industry code is CRAFADAJ, Sporting Goods & Outdoor Inventory-led Online Retailers. Its NAICS code is 459 and its SIC code is 5961.