Knihobot
Knihobot is an online consumer-to-consumer marketplace for second-hand books headquartered in Prague, serving individual buyers and sellers across the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria, and Germany under the Bookbot international brand.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2019
- HeadquartersPrague, Czechia
- Headcount1,001–5,000
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What Knihobot does
Knihobot is an online consumer-to-consumer marketplace for second-hand books, headquartered in Prague, Czech Republic, and operating internationally under the Bookbot brand. Founded in 2019, the company runs localized e-commerce platforms in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria, and Germany, with additional country domains provisioned for Spain, Italy, the Netherlands, France, and Belgium. The platform serves individual consumers who want to sell books they have already read or purchase used books at lower prices than new retail, across a broad catalog spanning fiction, non-fiction, children's literature, and specialized categories. Since launch, the company reports over 5 million books sold, with 35,000+ books added to the marketplace daily.
The core product is the web-based marketplace itself, supported by add-on features that reduce friction on both sides of the transaction. The Watchdog (Hlídací pes) feature notifies users via email when a specific book, author, or edition becomes available; the Knihovní scanner (Library Scanner) helps sellers list books quickly via barcode lookup; Knihotaxi provides an in-house pickup service in Prague; and a partnership with Alza allows drop-off at AlzaBox parcel locker locations across the Czech Republic. The platform is built around transaction-facilitation workflows: individual sellers set prices, Knihobot processes payments securely, and the company takes a commission on each sale.
Knihobot's revenue model is a marketplace take-rate on transactions, with no subscription or listing fees referenced. Management has guided to €24 million in revenue by year-end 2024, roughly double the prior year. The company is venture-backed, having raised a €4 million Series A in August 2024 led by Genesis Growth Equity Fund I with participation from existing investor Miton, at a post-money valuation of approximately €20 million. Capital is being deployed to accelerate DACH-region expansion. Operational signals — high daily listing volume, geographic expansion, and a recently strengthened logistics partnership — point to an actively scaling marketplace.
Knihobot firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Knihobot
- Legal name
- Knihobot
- Website
- https://knihobot.cz
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2019
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1,001–5,000 employees
- Short description
- Knihobot is an online consumer-to-consumer marketplace for second-hand books headquartered in Prague, serving individual buyers and sellers across the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria, and Germany under the Bookbot international brand.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Knihobot industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Online Second-Hand Book Marketplace
- SIC
- Security Brokers, Dealers & Flotation Companies (6211)
- akta.pro primary industry
- DEX Aggregators & Smart Order Routing (FSADABAC)
Keywords
Where Knihobot is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Prague
- HQ country
- Czechia
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Knihobot business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Operations, Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- Marketplace Commission: Knihobot operates as a commission-based marketplace, earning revenue by facilitating transactions between book sellers and buyers. The platform takes a fee on each book sold through the service.
- Direct Book Sales: The company facilitates sales between individual sellers and buyers, with secure payment processing and logistics handled through the platform.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Marketplace transaction pricing based on seller-set prices and book condition |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels4 records
Knihobot product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Knihobot operates an online marketplace platform that enables individual consumers across Central Europe to buy and sell second-hand books. The platform facilitates transactions between book sellers and buyers with secure payment processing, condition-based grading (Very Good, Good, Damaged), and logistics support through AlzaBox drop-off partnerships and a dedicated Knihotaxi pickup service in Prague. Sellers set their own prices and the company earns revenue through commissions on each transaction.
Product overview
Knihobot (also known as Bookbot in international markets) operates as a unified online marketplace for second-hand books, combining both buying and selling capabilities in a single platform. The core product is the marketplace itself, supported by add-on features including the Watchdog price alert system, Knihotaxi pickup service in Prague, a book scanner tool, and AlzaBox drop-off integration for convenient book submission. The company also runs literary support programs including a Czech literature support program and a literary grant. The platform spans multiple Central European markets including Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria, and Germany, with country-specific domains for each market.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Knihobot/Bookbot Marketplace Online marketplace platform for buying and selling second-hand books, operating across Central Europe (Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria, Germany) with over 5 million books sold since launch. Handles secure payments, condition grading, and logistics integration.
Quantifiable outcome
- Over 5 million books sold since 2019 launch
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Knihobot
Customer profileSegments1 record
Ideal customer profiles1 record
Knihobot technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature2 records
Knihobot partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- AlzacoreAlza partnership allows Knihobot sellers to drop off books at AlzaBox locations across the Czech Republic, providing convenient logistics for the book selling process. This enhances the customer experience by offering accessible drop-off points.
- Local Retailers and Logistics ProvidersminorPartnerships with local retailers and logistics providers support the company's operations across Central Europe, enabling efficient book collection, processing, and delivery services.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Knihobot competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Momox: Germany-headquartered reseller of second-hand books, media, and clothing. Closest direct comparable to Knihobot's core model: it buys used books from consumers and resells them through its own marketplace, operating across DACH and other European markets.
- reBuy: European recommerce platform that buys and resells used books, media, electronics, and more. Highly comparable to Knihobot on the supply-aggregation side (consumers sell to reBuy directly) and operates in overlapping DACH markets.
- ZVAB (Zentrales Verzeichnis Antiquarischer Bücher): Central directory of antiquarian books; a long-standing German marketplace aggregating rare and used book dealers. Comparable to Knihobot as a used-book discovery and transaction platform, with deep antiquarian catalog depth Knihobot cannot yet match.
- ThriftBooks: US-based large-scale seller of used books operating its own marketplace and wholesale sourcing model. Directly comparable unit-economics and inventory-rotation playbook, scaled to North America.
Broad incumbents
- AbeBooks: Amazon-owned global online marketplace for new, used, rare, and out-of-print books. Operates the same peer-to-peer used-book model as Knihobot but at global scale, with the logistics and trust advantages of the Amazon ecosystem.
- BookFinder: Meta-search engine aggregating used, new, rare, and out-of-print book listings across dozens of marketplaces including AbeBooks and Amazon. Adjacent competitor for buyer-side traffic and book discovery.
- eBay: Global C2C and B2C marketplace that hosts substantial used-book listings. While not specialized, eBay represents the broad-marketplace competitive alternative Knihobot must differentiate against.
Emerging players
- Vinted: European peer-to-peer marketplace for second-hand goods (primarily apparel, but expanding into books and media). Comparable marketplace dynamics and European consumer reach; competes for the same circular-economy consumer wallet.
- Sellpy (Klarna): Klarna-owned recommerce platform that buys and resells used goods (with category expansion into media/books). Comparable consumer-facing secondhand buying experience, backed by Klarna's distribution in Northern Europe.
Regional players
- Bol.com: Leading Dutch/Belgian e-commerce marketplace with a sizable used-books category. Regionally comparable consumer-facing books platform operating in a similar low-margins, logistics-intensive model in Benelux.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Knihobot social profiles
Digital presenceKnihobot financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Knihobot leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Knihobot funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds3 records
Investors2 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Knihobot 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 Knihobot
What does Knihobot do?
Knihobot operates an online marketplace platform that enables individual consumers across Central Europe to buy and sell second-hand books. The platform facilitates transactions between book sellers and buyers with secure payment processing, condition-based grading (Very Good, Good, Damaged), and logistics support through AlzaBox drop-off partnerships and a dedicated Knihotaxi pickup service in Prague. Sellers set their own prices and the company earns revenue through commissions on each transaction.
Is Knihobot a public or private company?
Knihobot is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Knihobot founded?
Knihobot was founded in 2019. It employs 1,001 to 5,000 people.
Where is Knihobot based?
Knihobot is headquartered in Prague, Czechia, in the Europe region.
How does Knihobot make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Marketplace Commission is the primary driver. The others are direct Book Sales.
Who are Knihobot's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Momox, reBuy, ZVAB (Zentrales Verzeichnis Antiquarischer Bücher) and ThriftBooks. Broad incumbents are AbeBooks, BookFinder and eBay. Emerging players are Vinted and Sellpy (Klarna). Bol.com is listed as a regional player.
Does Knihobot have an API?
No public API is recorded for Knihobot.
What industry is Knihobot in?
Knihobot's product category is Online Second-Hand Book Marketplace. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSADABAC, DEX Aggregators & Smart Order Routing. Its SIC code is 6211.