Naver, a search giant from South Korea, plans, to acquire Poshmark, a secondhand apparel marketplace for $1.2 billion in cash. After the transaction is completed, Poshmark becomes a standalone Naver subsidiary led by, the CEO of Poshmark, and the Poshmark management team. Besides, Poshmark will continue to operate under its existing brand and keep its employee team, and user base. The headquarter also will be the same, in Redwood City, California.
By acquiring Poshmark, Naver will combine the service’s growing social shopping platform, where users buy and sell used apparel, with its “technological prowess” and existing communities, like the online forum Naver Café. Among benefits for Poshmark are Naver’s image recognition and search technologies that will allow Poshmark to offer new experiences in discovery and recommendation that will allow users to find apparel by searching colors, materials, and designs and identify where to find products by scanning clothes using their smartphone cameras. “The opportunity to join forces with Naver — one of the world’s leading and most innovative and successful internet companies — is a testament to the strength of our brand, operating model, and what we’ve built over the last decade with our talented team and amazing community,” Manish Chandra.
