Mercari

Corporate brand

Unclaimed Request correction

A Japanese technology company best known for its mobile peer-to-peer marketplace for buying and selling used goods.

Last updated October 2, 2026

AI crawler reads

No AI crawler has read this profile since Oct 28, 2026.

Overview

Mercari is a Japanese technology and commerce company founded in 2013 by Shintaro Yamada. Its principal product is a mobile-first consumer-to-consumer marketplace that allows individuals to list, discover, purchase, and ship used goods. The service is commonly associated with the idea of a digital flea market: sellers photograph items, write listings, set prices, and transact through the platform, while buyers search across categories ranging from clothing and accessories to electronics, toys, household goods, collectibles, and other everyday products. The company emerged during the expansion of smartphone commerce in Japan. Its proposition simplified resale by moving much of the flea-market experience into an application rather than requiring users to organize physical stalls or negotiate through informal channels. The model also made decluttering more convenient, allowing households to convert unused possessions into cash while extending the useful life of products. This recommerce orientation became central to Mercari’s consumer positioning and later informed its international advertising. Mercari expanded into the United States in 2014. The U.S. service emphasized a shipped marketplace in which transactions could be completed without buyers and sellers meeting in person, a feature highlighted in the company’s marketing. International expansion was strategically important because management sought to reproduce the scale and network effects achieved in Japan, although the U.S. business faced the greater challenge of building liquidity and brand recognition in a market with established resale platforms. The company became one of Japan’s most prominent technology start-ups and reached unicorn status before its public listing. Mercari completed an initial public offering on the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s Mothers market on June 19, 2018, making it an unusual large-scale Japanese technology listing and providing capital for continued product development and overseas growth. Its shares began trading above the offering price, attracting substantial attention from domestic and international investors. Beyond its core marketplace, Mercari has developed adjacent services and monetization initiatives. These have included local transaction features, payment and financial services associated with the Mercari ecosystem, cross-border access supported by proxy purchasing arrangements, and advertising products that place keyword-relevant promotions in marketplace search results. The company has also explored digital-asset and other financial-service offerings in Japan. Availability and scope vary by market and over time. Mercari’s brand promise is built around giving unused items a new life and connecting one person’s unwanted possession with another person’s useful or desirable find. Its communications have often combined practical benefits such as decluttering, convenience, shipping, and earning money with a more emotional narrative about passing meaningful objects between people. The company remains active as a publicly traded Japanese marketplace and technology business, with Japan as its core market and the United States as an important international market.

History

Mercari was established in Japan in 2013 by Shintaro Yamada, whose previous entrepreneurial experience included founding Unoh, a company later acquired by Zynga. The new venture focused on a smartphone-based consumer marketplace for used goods. Rather than reproducing the logistics of a conventional online retailer, Mercari provided infrastructure for individuals to list possessions directly and transact with other users. This approach aligned with the rapid spread of smartphones and with Japan’s established interest in reuse, resale, and careful stewardship of household goods. The marketplace’s early appeal came from reducing the friction traditionally associated with second-hand selling. A user could create a listing from a phone, reach a large pool of potential buyers, and use integrated transaction and delivery processes. Buyers gained access to a broad and constantly changing inventory, including products that might be difficult to find through ordinary retail. Network effects became important: more sellers increased selection, while more buyers made the service more attractive to sellers. Mercari began international expansion in the United States in 2014. The U.S. product was presented as a convenient, shipping-oriented resale service, with advertising emphasizing that users could transact from home rather than arrange face-to-face meetings. The company’s overseas strategy reflected an ambition to become a global technology business rather than remain solely a Japanese marketplace. However, building a successful two-sided marketplace outside the home market required investment in customer acquisition, trust and safety, logistics, and local operating capabilities. By the middle of the 2010s, Mercari had become one of Japan’s best-known start-ups. It reached a private valuation above one billion dollars in 2016, making it a Japanese technology unicorn. Public-market preparations followed, and the company filed for a Tokyo listing in 2018. Mercari priced its IPO at ¥3,000 per share and began trading on June 19, 2018, on the Mothers market. The offering was widely viewed as a test of investor appetite for high-growth Japanese technology companies and gave Mercari new capital to pursue product development and overseas expansion. The company subsequently broadened its ecosystem beyond the basic listing-and-sale transaction. Local commerce features were introduced to support nearby exchanges, while payment and financial products sought to make Mercari a more integrated commerce platform. The company also developed cross-border access through official proxy purchasing services, allowing overseas customers to obtain selected Japanese marketplace items without directly using the domestic service in the same way as a Japan-based user. In Japan, Mercari introduced advertising products that could place keyword-linked promotions within and beyond marketplace discovery surfaces, creating an additional business model based on commercial intent and marketplace data. Brand marketing became a significant part of Mercari’s expansion, particularly in the United States. Campaigns portrayed resale as a positive exchange rather than merely disposal. In 2020, the Goodbye, Hello campaign used a reworked presentation of the Beatles song “Hello, Goodbye” to dramatize the transition of an item from a former owner to a new one. During the COVID-19 period, the company also adapted production methods and creative execution to remote conditions. In 2021, it extended the platform to a broad U.S. audience through its first national Super Bowl advertisement. Mercari’s continuing identity rests on recommerce: helping people sell unused possessions, find affordable or distinctive goods, and keep products in circulation longer. Its Japanese marketplace remains the foundation of the business, while its international operations, financial services, advertising products, cross-border tools, and selective physical experiences represent attempts to expand the value of the Mercari ecosystem. The company is active and publicly listed, although the performance and availability of individual services differ by geography and period.

2024
Los Angeles physical store
[6]Mercari opens first physical store in Los Angelesretaildive.com
Mercari opened a Los Angeles store supporting listings, events, and partner activations.
2021
First Super Bowl commercial
[9]First Super Bowl commercialprnewswire.com
Mercari ran its first national Super Bowl advertisement in the United States.
2020
Goodbye, Hello campaign launches
[4]Mercari turns the Beatles’ Hello, Goodbye into an ode to giving new life to unused thingsprnewswire.com
Mercari US introduced a campaign presenting resale as an emotional handoff from one owner to another.
2018
Tokyo IPO
[2]Mercari’s IPO raises over ¥60 billion on Mothersjapantimes.co.jp
Mercari listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s Mothers market on June 19.
2016
Unicorn valuation
[8]Unicorn valuationtechcrunch.com
Mercari reached a private valuation above one billion dollars, becoming a prominent Japanese technology unicorn.
2014
United States expansion
[7]United States expansionmediapost.com
Mercari launched its U.S. marketplace, beginning its effort to build a resale network outside Japan.
2013
Mercari founded in Japan
[1]Mercari official websitemercari.com
Shintaro Yamada founded Mercari as a mobile consumer-to-consumer marketplace for used goods.

Products and positioning

A mobile-first recommerce marketplace focused on convenient resale, household decluttering, broad product discovery, and extending the life of unused goods.

Peer-to-peer ecommerce marketplace · 2013
Mercari marketplace
Mercari’s core mobile marketplace enables individuals to list and purchase new or used goods. The assortment is user-generated and spans fashion, electronics, toys, collectibles, household products, sports equipment, and other categories. The service combines listing tools, search and discovery, payments, buyer and seller communication, ratings, and shipping or delivery workflows. Its value proposition is convenience: users can turn unused possessions into saleable inventory and discover items outside conventional retail assortments.
International resale marketplace · 2014
Mercari US
The U.S. marketplace adapts Mercari’s peer-to-peer resale model for American consumers. Its communications have emphasized shipping and remote transactions, allowing users to sell and buy without arranging an in-person meeting. The service has been marketed as a simple way to declutter homes, earn money from unused items, and find second-hand products across a broad assortment.
Local marketplace feature
Mercari Local
Mercari Local was developed to make nearby buying and selling easier within the marketplace ecosystem. Its communications positioned local exchange as a complement to shipped transactions, with creative showing items moving from one home to another. Availability and operating details may vary by market and period.
Marketplace advertising
Mercari Ads
Mercari Ads is a cost-per-click advertising offering associated with the Japanese marketplace. It allows relevant commercial messages to appear in connection with marketplace searches and potentially other digital surfaces. The product gives advertisers access to users with active shopping intent while providing Mercari with a revenue stream beyond transaction-related monetization.

Marketing campaigns

2021Super Bowl LV
United States
Mercari aired its first national Super Bowl commercial, extending Goodbye, Hello to one of the largest U.S. television audiences. The spot presented unused household items as capable of finding a new purpose with another owner.
Outcome. The campaign sought high-reach awareness for Mercari as it competed for recognition in the U.S. resale market.
Source
2020Goodbye, Hello
United States
Mercari US used a creative interpretation of the Beatles’ “Hello, Goodbye” to frame resale as a meaningful exchange: one person says goodbye to an unused item while another welcomes a new find. The campaign linked decluttering with discovery and emphasized the human connection created by the marketplace.
Outcome. The platform extended the campaign into television and digital advertising and used it as the basis for broader brand awareness activity.
Source
2020Remote upbeat resale advertising
United States
During the pandemic, Mercari US shifted to upbeat creative showing people celebrating the act of selling unwanted household goods. Production used actors filming from their homes, reflecting social-distancing conditions and highlighting the platform’s no-meetups shipping model.
Outcome. The campaign maintained advertising activity while conventional production was disrupted and reinforced Mercari’s convenience proposition.
Source
Mercari Local launch communications
United States
Targeted digital and audio creative supported the introduction of Mercari Local, presenting local exchange as another way for items to move between households.
Outcome. The campaign broadened the narrative beyond shipped resale to include local marketplace activity.
Source

Brand decisions

2018
Pursue international growth after public listingStrategy
Background
Mercari entered the public market while its domestic marketplace was established but its U.S. operation still required investment and user growth.
Action taken
The company used the IPO as a source of capital and stated an ambition to become a global technology company, with overseas expansion—especially in the United States—as a strategic priority.
Aftermath
The listing became a major Japanese technology IPO and kept international execution at the center of Mercari’s corporate narrative.
Source
Develop marketplace advertisingOther
Background
Mercari sought to broaden monetization beyond marketplace transactions while helping users discover relevant products and services.
Action taken
Mercari Japan introduced cost-per-click advertising tied to marketplace search and considered expanding advertising inventory across additional surfaces.
Aftermath
Advertising became an additional potential revenue stream connected to marketplace purchase intent.
Source

Recent events

2024
Mercari opens a physical store in Los Angeles[6]Mercari opens first physical store in Los Angelesretaildive.com
Other
Mercari opened a Los Angeles location combining seller-listing support, events and a partner pop-up area, extending the digital resale brand into a physical setting.
2021
Mercari launches its first national Super Bowl advertisement[9]First Super Bowl commercialprnewswire.com
Campaign
The company announced a Super Bowl LV commercial in the United States as an extension of its Goodbye, Hello brand platform.
2018
Mercari completes Tokyo stock-market debut[2]Mercari’s IPO raises over ¥60 billion on Mothersjapantimes.co.jp
Other
Mercari listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s Mothers market in an IPO that attracted significant attention as one of Japan’s largest technology offerings of the year and supported the company’s international growth ambitions.

Sources13 sources

Cite this profile: Cite the canonical profile. /brand-wiki/mercari · Editorial policy · How profiles are compiled