Circus
Circus (circus株式会社) is a Tokyo-based HRTech company operating circusAGENT, a B2B recruitment marketplace connecting 4,300+ client companies with 170,000+ recruitment agents, complemented by corporate HR SaaS (circusHR β), a job seeker-agent matching service, and a free AI-assisted resume creation platform.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2017
- HeadquartersTokyo, Japan
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingSoftware
What Circus does
Circus (circus株式会社) is a Tokyo-headquartered HRTech company founded in July 2017 by Yabe Takashi, operating a four-product HR platform structured around two pillars: a Data Platform serving HR industry participants and a Human Capital pillar serving individual job seekers. The flagship product, circusAGENT, is a B2B marketplace connecting companies seeking to hire with recruitment agencies; it aggregates 120,000+ job listings accessible to 170,000+ recruitment agent companies and has processed 16,982 annual contracts on behalf of 4,300+ client companies. The platform generates revenue through a performance-based success fee charged only upon successful placement, with no listing or subscription fees for employers; agencies access built-in CRM, candidate management, inter-agency sharing, and revenue-sharing features. The resume creation service 'Totonou Application Documents' (Totonou Oubo Shorui, launched January 2026) extends the offering to job seekers directly with NLP-based resume parsing and AI-generated job summaries.
The company operates a vertically integrated platform architecture combining structured job-listing data, accumulated hiring and screening outcomes, and a LINE messenger integration (over 15,000 friends) for agent-candidate communication. Supporting products include circusHR β (a corporate HR SaaS for enterprise HR departments) and 転職AGENT Navi (a job-seeker-to-career-advisor matching service). Marketing and go-to-market rely on multi-channel distribution including trade event exhibitions (Back Office DXPO in Sapporo and Nagoya 2026), content marketing, PR, and strategic channel partnerships including a manufacturing-focused alliance with Genbato via Yamazen. The company has earned three consecutive ITreview Grid Award Leader designations in the job database category and the SalesNow Growth Award 2025 for SMB performance.
Circus is a privately held, bootstrapped company with ¥29.56M in stated capital and no disclosed external funding rounds or institutional investors. The organization has grown to 171 employees by March 2026, with headquarters in Kyobashi, Chuo-ku, Tokyo, and has established structured new-graduate hiring starting April 2024 (a second cohort of 11 joined April 2025). Geographic operations remain centered on Japan's Kanto region with recent expansion signals pointing to Hokkaido and Tokai regional markets. Ownership and control appear concentrated with the founder, who is a former recruitment agent by background.
Circus firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Circus
- Legal name
- circus株式会社
- Website
- https://circus-group.jp
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2017
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Circus (circus株式会社) is a Tokyo-based HRTech company operating circusAGENT, a B2B recruitment marketplace connecting 4,300+ client companies with 170,000+ recruitment agents, complemented by corporate HR SaaS (circusHR β), a job seeker-agent matching service, and a free AI-assisted resume creation platform.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Circus industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Recruitment Platform
- NAICS
- Employment Placement Agencies and Executive Search Services (56131), Employment Placement Agencies (561311)
- SIC
- Services-Employment Agencies (7361)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Retail & Consumer Services Direct Hire (BPACAFAM)
Keywords
Where Circus is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Tokyo
- HQ country
- Japan
- HQ region
- Asia
Offices1 record
Markets served
Circus business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- Success Fee / Transaction Fee: Performance-based pricing model where companies pay only when hiring is successful. No listing fees or monthly fees charged to companies.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Free job posting with performance-based success fee |
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels5 records
Circus product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Circus operates circusAGENT, a B2B recruitment platform connecting companies seeking to hire with recruitment agencies. Companies post job listings for free and reach 170,000+ recruitment agent companies, paying only a success fee upon successful hires. The company also offers circusHR β (corporate HR SaaS), 転職AGENT Navi (job seeker to career advisor matching), and ととのう応募書類 (Totonou Application Documents, a free AI-powered resume creation service for job seekers).
Product overview
Circus offers a multi-product HR tech platform comprising four core services: (1) circusAGENT - a B2B recruitment platform connecting companies with talent agencies through a database of 120,000+ jobs and 1,700+ registered agencies with built-in CRM, sharing functions, and revenue-sharing; (2) circusHR β - corporate HR operations SaaS; (3) 転職AGENT Navi - job seeker to career advisor matching service; and (4) ととのう応募書類 - free resume creation service with AI capabilities. The Data Platform area provides HR DX solutions while Human Capital area focuses on individual career support.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- circusAGENT: Human resources introduction platform (B2B platform connecting companies with employment agencies)
- circusHR β
- 転職AGENT Navi
- ととのう応募書類 (Totonou Application Documents)
Products and services
- circusAGENT A B2B recruitment platform that connects companies with talent agencies. Companies post jobs once and reach 1,700+ agencies for candidate referrals. Agencies access 120,000+ job listings with built-in CRM, candidate management functions, sharing functionality for inter-agency collaboration, and revenue sharing.
- circusHR β
Quantifiable outcome
- 170,000+ recruitment agent companies on platform
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Circus
Customer profileNamed customers6 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Circus technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration1 record
AI capability4 records
Feature1 record
Circus partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- ゲンバト (Genbato)corePartnership with Yamazen (山善) for manufacturing companies. Genbato serves as a channel partner connecting recruitment services with manufacturing sector companies.
- ウィルオブ・ワーク (Willof Work)coreStrategic partnership in the recruitment/HR services sector
- SpeeeminorPartnership with Speee, a digital marketing company
- Open House GroupminorCustomer and marketing partner relationship
- UUUMminorCustomer and marketing partner relationship
- CyberBuzzminorCustomer and marketing partner relationship
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Circus competitors and assessment
Company assessmentEmerging players
- HRBrain: Japanese HR tech SaaS providing HR database, evaluation, and talent management tools. Comparable as a Japan-focused HR-tech company expanding into adjacent SaaS products from a similar starting point.
- SmartHR: Leading Japanese cloud HR and labor-management SaaS, having expanded into broader HR-tech adjacencies. Relevant peer for Circus's circusHR β HR-SaaS direction and its capital-efficient growth playbook in Japan.
- Eight (Sansan): Japan-based business card and contact database platform by Sansan with a people-search and recruiting data layer. Comparable as a Japan B2B platform that has built a recruitment-relevant data asset on top of professional identity data.
Broad incumbents
- Mynavi: Japan's largest new-graduate recruitment media and broader HR services firm. Especially comparable given Circus's recent expansion into the new-graduate recruitment market.
- Indeed: Global job search engine owned by Recruit. Operates a job-listing and matching platform competing for the same employer budget and candidate attention as circusAGENT, though global rather than Japan-focused.
- en Japan: Major Japanese HR services company operating multiple recruitment platforms and staffing businesses. Competes with Circus for employer hiring spend and recruitment agency partnerships in Japan.
- LinkedIn: Global professional network with recruiting solutions (LinkedIn Recruiter, job listings) used heavily by Japanese employers. Represents the broadest incumbent competitive threat for any B2B recruitment platform.
- Recruit Holdings: Japan's largest HR and recruitment conglomerate (Indeed, Rikunabi, SUUMO-adjacent HR services). Overlaps broadly with Circus across recruitment platforms and HR SaaS, with vastly greater scale and resources.
Direct peers
- BizReach: Japanese direct recruitment and headhunting platform serving employers and job seekers with a database-driven matching model — directly comparable to circusAGENT's employer-to-agent matching business and a clear competitor in Japan's recruitment-platform category.
- Wantedly: Japan-headquartered job-matching platform connecting companies with candidates around mission and culture fit. Comparable as a Japanese recruitment-tech platform with similar employer/candidate matching and a consumer-facing brand.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Circus social profiles
Digital presenceCircus financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Circus leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Circus funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Circus 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 Circus
What does Circus do?
Circus operates circusAGENT, a B2B recruitment platform connecting companies seeking to hire with recruitment agencies. Companies post job listings for free and reach 170,000+ recruitment agent companies, paying only a success fee upon successful hires. The company also offers circusHR β (corporate HR SaaS), 転職AGENT Navi (job seeker to career advisor matching), and ととのう応募書類 (Totonou Application Documents, a free AI-powered resume creation service for job seekers).
Is Circus a public or private company?
Circus is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Circus founded?
Circus was founded in 2017. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Circus based?
Circus is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, in the Asia region.
How does Circus make money?
One revenue line is on record: success Fee / Transaction Fee.
Who are Circus's main competitors?
Emerging players on record are HRBrain, SmartHR and Eight (Sansan). Broad incumbents are Mynavi, Indeed, en Japan, LinkedIn and Recruit Holdings. Direct peers are BizReach and Wantedly.
Does Circus have an API?
No public API is recorded for Circus.
What industry is Circus in?
Circus's product category is Recruitment Platform. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPACAFAM, Retail & Consumer Services Direct Hire. Its NAICS code is 56131 and its SIC code is 7361.