Posted by Singapore, 1 Sep 2022 – Leading recommerce group in Greater Southeast Asia Carousell, celebrates a milestone moment, a decade of supporting entrepreneurs, with two initiatives: the Second Caroupreneur Awards, and the launch of #StartonCarousell.
The Second Caroupreneur Awards recognise the best of Carousell sellers and celebrates 182 users in Singapore, Hong Kong and the Philippines for their outstanding achievements throughout 2021. The Caroupreneur Awards celebrate a wide variety of outstanding achievements of Carousell users, ranging from entrepreneurs who started their businesses on Carousell and SMEs who digitialised their businesses to everyday casual users who sold and gave away good quality preloved items for free.
The awards launched in Singapore last year and this year expanded regionally to include users from Hong Kong, the Philippines, with a mix of both local and regional awards.
The Second Caroupreneur Awards: Celebrating local entrepreneurs with humble beginnings
Local mobile phone seller Glenn (@gwmobile.sg), who clinched the Caroupreneur of the Year award for Singapore, was also awarded with the Best in Carousell: InstantBuy Merchant award and Best in Carousell: Electronics award. Glenn stood out for having the highest number of positive reviews, comprehensive descriptions and great use of Carousell Protection for extra trust, allowing users to transact with peace of mind. “We started in Sim Lim square as a repair unit ten years ago, back when e-commerce wasn’t as prominent as it is today. After a few years, many of our regular customers asked how come we weren’t on Carousell yet! Today we’re a one stop service for all things mobile and being on Carousell connects us directly to customers in a very immediate way. We pride ourselves most on being able to go the extra mile to provide customers with information, pictures and videos in real time, warranties and any additional services they might need, to make sure their transaction is the best that it can be,” said Glenn.
Like Glenn, Alan (@mistermobile), another mobile phone seller, was also awarded the Best in Carousell: InstantBuy Merchant award. “We onboarded onto Carousell because it was free to list and transact, and it was a platform with a strong in-app messaging function, where communication between buyers and sellers were actively encouraged. I felt that customer service was the core of Mister Mobile since the beginning, with our humble retail background giving us an edge over competitors. In 2017, we opened our first branch at Hougang, together with the starting of our Carousell account. We haven’t looked back since. Today, we have 5 outlets across Singapore, more than 50 employees, and over 9,000 5-star reviews and 15,000 listings on Carousell,” said Alan.
Winner of the first Caroupreneur of the Year award and Best in Carousell: Autos (User Cars) last year, Han Xiang (@mybrogarage) is the first user to win awards consecutively both years, being awarded the Best in Carousell: Autos (User Cars) award this year as well. Han Xiang maintained his excellent track record with detailed listings, well-shot photos and consistently going the extra mile for his customers with additional after-sales care and services.
“I’ve always been into bikes and cars. When I was 29, I took a leap of faith to leave the corporate world to start an Autos business before I hit the big 30. It all began with selling low-priced small car accessories on Carousell. It was surprising how quick and how far Carousell could help reach out to the masses – as soon as I listed an item, I got enquiries! We’ve grown so much since then. Today, we offer a one-stop solution to car buyers, with a physical store in addition to our Carousell account. We strongly believe in providing services with a personal touch. Carousell’s marketplace is casual & friendly, making transactions successful and allowing for great conversations with Carousell users, many of whom have become personal friends,” said Han Xiang.
All Carousell accounts created before 1 July 2021 in Singapore, Hong Kong, and the Philippines were automatically included in the assessment. The judging panel, made up of Carousell co-founders and senior executives, assessed shortlisted sellers identified from their performance from 1 January to 31 December 2021 together with a mix of qualitative and quantitative criteria, such as quality of listings, reviews, creativity and brand story.
For the full list of the Second Caroupreneur Award winners, please visit here.
Nurturing a new generation of entrepreneurs
Launched in August, #StartonCarousell is Carousell’s first-ever entrepreneurship program across Hong Kong, Singapore, Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia to help young aspiring entrepreneurs bring their business to life. Inspired by the real stories from Carousellers and their aspiration for financial freedom, this program aims to provide the tools, hands-on experience, and guidance they need to get started. This includes training by the Carousell team on how to use seller tools to amplify their business, and an exclusive panel discussion and coffee chats with established mentors such as:
- Siu Rui Quek, Co-founder and CEO of Carousell
- Rachel Lim, Co-founder of Love, Bonito
- Crystal Widjaja, Chief Product Officer of Kumu
- Joel Leong, Co-founder of ShopBack
“Our journey with Carousell has been absolutely meaningful. Ten years into our mission, we have the privilege of serving tens of millions of users across the region, with Carousell shaping the way people come together to buy and sell, and connect with one another. We’ve seen how our platform enables users to realise their own passions and aspirations, and this has been an extremely fulfilling validation of our mission, to inspire the world to start selling and buying. We celebrate our Carousellers’ successes, passion projects, heartwarming stories and outstanding achievements with the Caroupreneur Awards.
We also mark this humbling milestone moment of ten years of entrepreneurship with #StartonCarousell, our first ever entrepreneurship programme. We can’t wait to see how this takes off, to meet with buzzing aspiring entrepreneurs across the region and to exchange ideas with them through our mentorship sessions,” said Quek Siu Rui, Co-founder and CEO, Carousell.
Interested applicants can sign up for the open call for #StartonCarousell by 7 September here.
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About Carousell
Carousell is the leading recommerce group in Greater Southeast Asia on a mission to inspire the world to start selling, and to make secondhand the first choice. Founded in August 2012 in Singapore, the Group has a leading presence in eight markets under the brands Carousell, Cho Tot, Laku6, Mudah.my, OneKyat, Ox Street, and Refash, serving tens of millions of monthly active users. Carousell is backed by leading investors including Telenor Group, Rakuten Ventures, Naver, STIC Investments and Sequoia Capital India. Carousell has a diverse range of products in over 30 categories, including property, autos, electronics, home and furniture, and fashion. Download the app for iOS or Android, and visit http://www.carousell.com for more information.