Australian property intelligence platform Archistar has raised $6 million in funding for expansion, while South Korea’s Kakao Corporation has acquired VC-backed local fashion marketplace Zigzag.
Aussie proptech startup Archistar raises $6m
Australian property intelligence platform Archistar announced raising $6 million in funding co-anchored by private investment fund Skip Capital and existing investor AirTree Ventures.
Launched in 2018, Archistar operates a digital platform that combines architectural design with artificial intelligence to aid in property decision-making. The platform is used by agents, developers, architects, government planners, and homeowners across Australia.
Archistar, founded by Dr Benjamin Coorey, an architect with a PhD in 3D generative building design, allows professionals to create and assess hundreds of compliant 3D generative designs that explore features such as height restrictions, exposure to sunlight, ventilation, among others.
In a statement, Coorey said the fresh funding would help further accelerate the firm’s expansion across key markets in the UK and the US while continuing to develop its automatic development assessment technology.
The fresh funding comes a year after the platform raised about $4 million in a Series A round led by AirTree. Archistar’s early backers include the former chairman of REA and CEO of NewsCorp Australia, Peter Tonagh; former CoreLogic managing director Graham Mirabito; former CBRE Australasia president Tom Southern; and former managing director of Murdoch Media, Prabhat Sethi.
S Korea’s Kakao acquires fashion ecommerce platform ZigZag
Kakao Corporation, operator of South Korea’s top messenger app, has acquired Croquis, the operator of fashion shopping platform ZigZag, for an undisclosed amount, according to local reports.
The plan is to spin off Kakao’s style business division from its subsidiary Kakao Commerce and then merge it with Croquis. The merged entity will be headed by Croquis CEO Song Jung-Soon.
No official financial details were released but Korean media reported the acquisition cost to be about $900 million.
Launched in 2015, Zigzag is South Korea’s top fashion platform among young Korean females, with monthly app users reaching some 3 million as of the end of 2020. It has a listing of more than 4,000 online shopping malls and brands and its annual transaction is expected to exceed 1 trillion won (about $890 million) this year.
Zigzag is backed by Silicon Valley-based VC firm Altos Ventures and Korean investor Stonebridge Capital.