Taiwan luxury fashion marketplace PopChill has announced plans to enter Hong Kong, using funds from a newly inked USD 1.9 million investment to enter the new international market.
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Investors in the latest funding round included ITIC, AVA Angels Fund, 500 Global, Acorn Pacific Ventures, and Darwin Venture, with the funds taking PopChill’s total investments to USD 5.2 million.
PopChill said the new funds will primarily be used to expand into the Hong Kong market, as the resale platform looka to replicate the rapid growth experienced in its local Taiwan over the past year, where it maintains growth of at least 10 percent every month, according to a press release.
“After a year of operation, the current monthly transaction volume in the Taiwanese market has exceeded USD 1 million,” said PopChill co-founder, Andy Kuo.
“The average order value on the platform has also reached USD 800, representing the trust that buyers and sellers have in the platform.”
The secondhand platform said it chose Hong Kong to expand internationally after observing the high demand and supply for luxury goods in Hong Kong, a region which also has the advantage of zero tariffs.
Over the past quarter, PopChill has been actively establishing its presence in Hong Kong, forming a local team and an authentication centre, and integrating local logistics.
“Our goal for the Hong Kong branch is to replicate the growth trajectory experienced in Taiwan over the past few months, rapidly establishing supply and demand locally,” added Kuo.
Looking ahead, PopChill said it also plans to enter the Singaporean and Malaysian markets by 2024.
Unlike traditional e-commerce platforms where sellers and buyers trade directly, PopChill, founded in Taipei in 2021, adopts an authentication model in the middle.
Sellers independently list their products with their own set prices,and once a product is sold, it is first sent to the platform for authentication and quality inspection before being shipped to the buyer, ensuring a secure transaction for the buyer.
The platform also ensures that the product matches its online description. For product authentication, PopChill collaborates with the AI authentication company Entrupy, using machine learning for authentication with an accuracy rate of 99.1 percent.