Marketplaces Startups

HIVE PRELOVED is an online marketplace for pre-loved luxury items sourced directly from Japan, offering curated secondhand fashion and accessories to global customers. The company sources, verifies, and sells carefully preserved pieces based on the Japanese philosophy of Mottainai, emphasizing quality, authenticity, and minimal waste.

1 investor

LIFULL Co., Ltd. operates a group of brands providing real estate and housing information along with other lifestyle-related information to consumers. The company is a publicly listed real estate information provider based in Japan.

1 investor

AgeWell Japan operates Motto Mate, a service that dispatches vetted young partners to seniors' homes to help with daily-life tasks such as smartphone and internet setup, shopping errands, accompanying outings, document preparation, and conversation. Aimed at independent-living seniors in Japan, it focuses on improving quality of life rather than nursing or medical care.

1 investor

Manalink is an online tutoring marketplace connecting students with professional tutors across Japan. The platform offers 1-on-1 instruction for elementary, middle, and high school students, with features including homework management, progress tracking via AI-summarized lesson notes, and parental visibility of student learning.

1 investor

SmartRyde offers pre-booked airport transfer services using vetted professional drivers across 150 countries. It provides 24-hour customer support via chat, driver waiting time for flight delays, and free cancellation up to 48 hours before use.

1 investor

via-at operates a location-based digital platform that lets local tourist spots and venues offer in-place services such as hometown-tax (furusato nozei) donations, tipping, and sharing of dormant spaces. It targets Japanese regional communities and facility operators, enabling unmanned self-service management of coworking drop-ins, room and office sharing, and visitor engagement points.

1 investor

A Google Sheets add-on that helps Amazon sellers research products and identify profitable items by automatically pulling pricing, sales velocity, and competitor data from Amazon and integrating with NETSEA, Japan's largest B2B sourcing platform.

1 investor

Audiostock operates a licensing marketplace for music tracks and sound effects created by Japanese music creators, selling BGM and sound effects to video producers, production companies, ad agencies, and YouTubers. It supports creators' monetization and also runs an overseas version targeting customers mainly in North America.

1 investor

Giftpad is a web-based catalog gifting service that allows users to send gifts via SNS or email without requiring recipient address or contact details. The platform offers a curated selection of products across gourmet, fashion, accessories, and experiences for occasions such as weddings, births, and birthdays.

1 investor

Coconala operates an online marketplace, launched in 2012, where individuals and professionals sell skills and services such as logo design, website development, presentation decks, business plans, SEO advice, and app development. Its "PRO" certification program matches certified professionals with business customers.

1 investor

Startup Class ("スタクラ") is a Japanese job-change and side-work platform focused on connecting professionals with vetted, high-growth startups and ventures. It offers curated startup job listings, a 5-minute startup aptitude assessment, and career-change stories, targeting people seeking more autonomy and challenge in their work.

1 investor

TicketMe operates a ticket-selling platform for event organizers, covering self-service and consignment sales, domestic and international sales, official resale, and entrance management. It supports ticketing for music, theater, and sports events, including lotteries and reserved seating.

1 investor

TRANBI operates an online M&A platform where business sellers and buyers negotiate transactions directly, listing companies, business units, or equipment for transfer. It serves owners looking to sell and decision-makers looking to buy, with the platform handling matching and deal reporting.

1 investor

Value Golf runs online golf-booking services for Japan, including a single-player reservation system that lets individual golfers book tee times at courses nationwide and search course website booking plans. The company also offers on-course lessons, an indoor golf facility, discounted play-ticket and golf-equipment online shops, and a free monthly golf magazine.

1 investor

Pickyou operates a community platform built around a network of over 6,000 creators and influencers, running two lines of business: commerce and PR/advertising. Its offerings include influencer-led PR campaign design and production aimed at Gen Z audiences, and a secondhand marketplace app where users can buy items worn by those influencers.

1 investor

Best One Cruise is a Japanese-language online cruise travel agency that sells and books cruise vacations across categories such as casual, premium, and luxury ships. It offers curated itineraries (e.g. Mediterranean, Hawaii, Caribbean, Panama Canal), rankings, and customer reviews for travelers, primarily serving the Japanese market.

1 investor

Best One Dot Com is an online travel agency (OTA) specializing in cruise travel and sea voyages, handling bookings across major cruise lines such as MSC Cruises, Royal Caribbean, and Princess Cruises. Based in Japan, it operates through subsidiaries including Five Star Cruise and Ebisu Ryokan.

1 investor

Liigo is an aggregator site that lets users search and book travel experiences, tours, activities, online experiences, and dining from a range of curated sources, listing over 250,000 domestic and international offerings. It serves consumers in Japan with multi-language and multi-currency support.

1 investor

Letter Fan is a Japanese platform that lets fans request personalized video messages ("video letters") from athletes, celebrities, and entertainers for individual recipients. It supports use cases such as gifts, encouragement, and charity campaigns tied to sports teams and public figures.

1 investor

羽田市場 (Haneda Ichiba) sells seafood and operates a platform business connecting fishery products from source to buyers. The Japanese company is engaged in the marine/seafood distribution and food commerce sector.

1 investor

Chorakuchoju (超楽長寿) is a Japanese healthcare venture addressing social isolation among people aged 50 and older, combining psychiatry, behavioral economics (nudge theory), and AI in its service design. It operates Hahalol, a dating and marriage matchmaking app for the 50-plus demographic aimed at reducing loneliness and its associated health risks.

1 investor

Nokisaki operates space-sharing services in Japan, including "Nokisaki Parking" for renting out unused parking spaces and reserving event parking, and "Nokisaki Business" for short-term rental of vacant retail and commercial spaces. It also runs event ticketing (TicketPass) and reserved parking for fireworks festivals and events across Japan.

1 investor

AdvisorFinder is an online platform where individuals search and filter financial advisors by location, specialty, and fee structure, review advisor profiles, and book intro calls directly. It offers assessments and profiles to match clients—including those in healthcare, military/veteran, and technology fields—with advisors suited to their needs.

0 investors

Aeropost provides end-to-end cross-border shipping and logistics for consumers in Latin America and the Caribbean, giving customers a U.S. address to shop from online stores worldwide and receive packages locally. Its services span tariff calculation, customs clearance, international shipping, and last-mile delivery, supported by Smart Lockers, Experience Centers, and a local payment platform.</parameter> <parameter name="founders">[{"full_name": "Jim Fendell", "title": "Founder"}, {"full_name": "Sebastian Bastian", "title": "Executive Chairman"}, {"full_name": "Adam Arviv", "title": "Director"}]

0 investors