Rentio closed a ¥500m ($4.4m) extension today featuring shipping group Yamato to boost its series E round to $17.6m, the latest in a string of Japan-based consumer goods rental services to raise money.
Yamato took part in the round through the Kuroneko Innovation Fund co-run by venture capital firm Global Brain, and it included SMBC Venture Capital and Mizuho Capital, respective subsidiaries of financial services firms Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation and Mizuho Bank.
Monoful and Globis Capital Partners (GCP) had backed the $13.2m first tranche in October this year on behalf of logistics provider Global Logistic Properties and education services firm Globis respectively, Monoful disclosing the following month it had led the close.
Rentio runs an e-commerce and rental service for household appliances, baby products and other electrical equipment such as cameras, allowing users to rent them on a one-shot or to-own basis. It has secured about $29m in funding since it was founded in 2015.
The platform lists some 2,900 products with more than 96,000 items in stock, and its orders exceeded 518,000 as of last month. The funding will help Rentio collaborate with additional manufacturers and logistics partners, conduct marketing campaigns and increase headcount.
Since the onset of the covid-19 pandemic early last year and its associated stay-at-home mandates across the globe, the sharing economy in Japan has gradually shifted from ride hailing and food delivery to include the rental of domestic appliances and other consumer goods.
Another company active in the sector, is PeaceTecLab, which owns item sharing marketplace Alice Style. It raised $20.5m in July 2021 from 12 investors spanning diverse industries, including marketing firm Vector, logistics group SBS and real estate developers Mori Trust and Nomura.
In terms of “higher-spec” products such as cameras, CameLove has been active in the space. Its investors include electronics retailer Bic Camera subsidiary Bic Innovation Capital and user interface design technology developer Goodpatch, both investing in October this year.
The neighbouring country of South Korea has also seen growth in household goods rental services in recent months, with long-established players Gmarket (now part of second-hand marketplace eBay) and Tmon (acquired by online deal portal Groupon) recording significant increases in demand.
Gmarket manager Lee Young-eun told Retail in Asia in July: “Demand for appliances and furniture have increased as more people are spending time at home due to covid-19.
“Subscription consumption, which is an extension of rental, is gaining huge popularity as people can own and use the products without having to purchase by paying large amounts and only need to pay monthly subscription fees.”
India-based Edunetwork is running a similar scheme, called RentoMojo, where users can lease home appliances and furniture. Interestingly, its corporate investors – internet company GMO, insurer Mitsui Sumitomo and consumer electronics manufacturer Samsung – come from Japan and South Korea.
GCP had already provided an undisclosed amount for Rentio in early 2019, before returning for an $8.8m round the year after, investing alongside SMBC Venture Capital, baby product manufacturer Combi and VC firm W Ventures, the 2020 round including debt financing from Resona Bank.
Rentio president and CEO Kenjirō Miwa told Sogyo Techo in an interview last month his company has formed strategic alliances with many big businesses and manufacturers.
“Since the beginning, we have been approaching manufacturers and proposing partnerships. In the course of developing our business, we realised that as the number of rentals increases, so does that of purchases,” Miwa added.
“Users who have rented and tried out a product are much more likely to buy it. This is proven by the data we have collected, which gives us a big edge when showing manufacturers the benefits of teaming up with us.” (Translated from Japanese by Global Corporate Venturing)
Image courtesy of Rentio.
