Jiraffe
Tokyo, JP · 5 known investors
Jiraffe Inc. is a Japanese company that plans, develops, and operates internet services, and also runs a used-equipment buying and resale business. It operates the magi business unit among its ventures.
Also known as Jiraffe Inc. · magi · ジラフ · 株式会社ジラフ
Founders & leadership
Investors · 5
Company profile
researched Aug 2026Jiraffe Inc. (株式会社ジラフ) is a Tokyo-based internet company whose core business is magi, a flea-market/marketplace app specialized in collectibles — trading cards, sneakers and hobby goods. magi embeds an authentication (鑑定) service inside the transaction flow, positioned to prevent counterfeit goods from circulating and to let users buy and sell verified items online. Alongside the app, the company runs physical "Card Shop magi" / trading-card and sneaker specialty stores, and an e-commerce arm (magi通販), a Pokémon-card-focused online store launched in September 2023.
The company's stated vision is to "create the standard for 2030." Its store network spans Nakano, Akihabara, Shibuya, Osaka, Nagoya and Taiwan, and announced openings extend to Kobe, Fukuoka Tenjin, Sendai, Takadanobaba, Tachikawa, Ebina, Osaka Namba, Ikebukuro and a renamed Nagoya Ekimae store. In July 2026 Jiraffe launched the "magi30 project," a plan to reach 30 magi trading-card stores nationwide by summer 2027, and began soliciting store properties.
Before focusing on magi, Jiraffe operated other internet services, including the buyback price-comparison site Hikakaku! (ヒカカク！), the smartphone marketplace Sumama, and the anonymous question service Peing (質問箱), whose business it transferred in September 2021. Per an investor account, founder Teruaki Aso started Hikakaku! while a student at Hitotsubashi University, which became Jiraffe Inc. when he was 22, and launched magi at 26 before closing or selling the other businesses.
Founding story
Teruaki Aso ran his first online community site as a middle school student. While studying at Hitotsubashi University he built Hikakaku!, a price-comparison platform for consumers seeking the highest buyback offers for used gadgets from secondhand shops; that project became Jiraffe Inc. when he was 22. After experimenting across categories such as smartphone repair, electronics, sneakers and general secondhand goods, he and his team chose the trading card game market, and he launched magi at 26.
Business model
Jiraffe operates a consumer marketplace for collectibles combined with owned physical retail. The magi app connects individual buyers and sellers of trading cards, sneakers and hobby items, with an in-house authentication service integrated into transactions; the company also sells directly through its own card shops and an online store, and has historically operated used-goods buying and resale as well as media/price-comparison properties.
Traction
magi monthly GMV passed JPY 300 million in June 2021 and reached JPY 500 million in September 2022. High-value transactions on the platform have included a Bulbasaur Pokémon Snap promo card sold for JPY 9 million (October 2022), a Gyarados Pokémon Snap Best Photo Contest promo card for JPY 10 million (June 2022), and Squirtle and Koffing Pokémon Snap Best Photo Contest promo cards totaling JPY 20 million (July 2022). The store network is expanding across Japan toward a stated target of 30 stores by summer 2027, with an existing international store in Taipei.
Latest developments
During 2026 Jiraffe announced a series of new Card Shop magi locations — Kobe Marui (June 2026), Fukuoka Tenjin (July 2026, first in Kyushu), Sendai (August 2026, first in Tohoku), Takadanobaba (August 2026, focused on Magic: The Gathering), a renamed and reopened Nagoya Ekimae store (August 2026), Osaka Namba Ekimae (July 2026), Tachikawa Ekimae (October 2026), Ebina Marui (November 2026) and Ikebukuro (September 2026) — and in July 2026 launched the magi30 project targeting 30 stores nationwide by summer 2027. A COO executive-officer personnel change was announced on 2026-08-03.
▸Full profile — market position, technology, go-to-market, geography, history
Market position
An investor blog post describes magi as Japan's leading marketplace dedicated to trading card games, addressing a global TCG market it values at approximately US$6 billion. The company combines online marketplace scale with a growing owned-store footprint, a dual-channel approach positioned around authentication of collectibles.
magi focuses on a single vertical — collector trading cards, sneakers and hobby goods — rather than general secondhand goods, and provides authentication as part of the transaction to address counterfeits. The company pairs the app with physical specialty stores that let customers inspect items in person, and with the magi VAULT custody-plus-instant-ownership-transfer feature.
Technology
The magi platform is a mobile marketplace app with an integrated authentication step in the trading flow, a magi VAULT feature (released February 2023) that allows immediate transfer of ownership of cards and other assets while they remain in custody, an API-style listing integration with Rakuten Rakuma (launched November 2022, with automatic syncing of individual listings from December 2022), and a Pokémon-card e-commerce site, magi通販.
Go-to-market
Distribution is dual-channel: the magi app and magi online store for online demand, and directly operated card shops in high-traffic urban locations and shopping centers (e.g. Marui and PARCO properties) for offline demand. The company also uses marketplace partnerships such as the Rakuten Rakuma listing integration, press releases, media appearances and industry conference talks by its CEO.
Collectors and players of trading card games (including Pokémon, Yu-Gi-Oh!, One Piece, Dragon Ball and Magic: The Gathering), sneaker and hobby collectors, and consumers selling used items; primarily consumer-to-consumer in Japan, with a store in Taiwan.
Geography
Headquartered in Tokyo, with an office at Frontier Yoyogi 3F-B, 1-11-2 Yoyogi, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo 151-0053. Stores are concentrated in Tokyo and the Kansai region — including Nakano, Akihabara, Shibuya, Takadanobaba, Tachikawa, Ikebukuro, Osaka, Kobe and Nagoya — plus Sendai (first store in the Tohoku region), Fukuoka Tenjin (first in Kyushu), Ebina, and an international store in Taipei, Taiwan. Most non-store roles can be performed fully remotely from anywhere in Japan.
History
Jiraffe grew out of the Hikakaku! buyback price-comparison site. Earlier services included the Sumama smartphone marketplace, which announced an instant-cash buyback service, Sumama Dash, in November 2017 for a January 2018 release, and the anonymous question service Peing, whose US version ninjama was covered in 2019; the Peing business was transferred in September 2021. magi launched in April 2019 with coverage in Forbes Japan and other outlets. In June 2021 the company reported magi monthly GMV surpassing JPY 300 million and opened a collector-focused trading card store in Nakano Broadway. Partnership with Rakuten Rakuma began in November 2022, magi VAULT launched in February 2023, and magi通販 in September 2023. From 2026 the company announced a rapid store rollout culminating in the magi30 project.
Compiled by commissioned research from 5 cited public sources — announcements, filings, and press listed under research sources below.
Key figures
latest reportedCompany-reported or press-reported figures, each dated to when it was claimed — not independently audited.
Timeline · 23
launches, deals, and filingsJiraffe began soliciting store properties as part of the plan to expand the magi trading-card shop network to 30 locations across Japan by summer 2027.
An investor post notes magi's international expansion marked by the opening of its first store in Taipei, described as a blueprint for further international expansion.
Taiwan-based accelerator and fund AppWorks announced an investment in Jiraffe, operator of the magi TCG marketplace, describing it as AppWorks' first-ever direct investment into a Japanese startup. No amount was disclosed.
Launch of a mail-order site specializing in Pokémon cards.
Feature allowing immediate trading of ownership of trading cards and other assets while they remain in custody.
Jiraffe began automatic linking of individual seller listings in the magi–Rakuten Rakuma integration.
Jiraffe started a service tie-up between the magi trading-card app and Rakuten Rakuma.
Jiraffe announced the transfer of its Peing (質問箱) anonymous question service business.
Announced alongside magi monthly GMV surpassing JPY 300 million.
Launch of magi, a flea-market app specialized in trading cards, covered by Forbes Japan and other media.
Ono, previously an assistant to an investment fund head and in HR at a honey specialty retailer, became Jiraffe's Chief Human Resources Officer.
Yamamoto, formerly of Accenture, joined as Chief Marketing Officer and product owner of the Hikakaku! buyback comparison site.
Jiraffe announced a buyback service on its Sumama smartphone marketplace allowing immediate conversion to cash.
Dated company events from announcements, filings, and press; legal rows summarize public dockets and regulator releases.
▸Research sources · 5
primary sources listed
- Jiraffejiraffe.co.jp · web
5 public sources were cited for this profile; the first-party ones are listed here.
Frequently asked questions
- What does Jiraffe do?
- Japanese operator of magi, a trading-card and collectibles marketplace app with authentication, plus a chain of card shops.
- Who founded Jiraffe?
- Jiraffe was founded by Teruaki Aso.
- Who are Jiraffe's investors?
- Jiraffe's investors include East Ventures, Gree, AppWorks Ventures, mint VC, Skyland Ventures.
- Where is Jiraffe headquartered?
- Jiraffe is headquartered in Tokyo, JP.