The co-founder and president of online marketplace Carousell on the power of technology and diversity
Marcus Tan comes across as serious yet easily amused at the same time. On the one hand, the president of e-marketplace Carousell, which he co-founded with university classmates Quek Siu Rui and Lucas Ngoo in 2012, can speak for hours about how the company has been working to impact the world by encouraging upcycling and entrepreneurship.
“Six years, seven markets, 150 million listings, over 50 million items sold…” On the other hand, he frequently ends his sentences with a hearty laugh, especially when he talks about his favourite cat videos. Together, the two contrasting qualities make the Generation T 2016 honouree particularly natural at his job as the key culture maker at Carousell.
The most difficult part about his job? “Finding the right people to hire, understanding what motivates everyone, aligning expectations and, most importantly, building a habitat where people can learn, progress, share their views and feel psychologically safe.” The company, which is reportedly worth US$500m, also constantly improves the user experience of its product. Most recently, it launched an e-payment system CarouPay to allow users to make more secure transactions and have their purchases mailed to them. It will further integrate artificial intelligence into its system in the future.
Moving forward
“My co-founders and I have ambitious goals for Carousell because we know that the world needs a product like ours. There are so many things that are underused but that might find use with someone else. Carousell has also become a platform that aspiring entrepreneurs use to sell their products.”
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