Social network Renren has invested $10m in China-based moving service GoGoVan in return for a 10% stake, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday.
Launched last year, GoGoVan is a free smartphone app through which users can order a van to move bulky items such as furniture. It also raises money through the display of adverts on its fleet of 20,000 vans.
The series B investment will fund an expansion by the startup to Seoul, Melbourne and Sydney before the end of this year, and further growth in Southeast Asia, Japan, China and India in the first quarter of 2015. GoGoVan raised $6.5m in a series A round led by Centurion Investment Management in August this year.
Gabriel Fong, executive chairman of GoGoVan, said: “Renren obviously understands China. Renren also has a lot of expertise in businesses that we are trying to do, the platform business.
“I think they can help with user acquisition and on the driver acquisition side. They know a lot of people and can source a team that works. Those are two of the most important factors.”
– Photo courtesy of GoGoVan