The editor of Downcodes brings you a report about the Encore second-hand goods search engine. Two former technology giant engineers, Alex Ruber and Parth Chopra, founded Encore with their common interest in the second-hand market and keen market insights, and were successfully selected for the Y Combinator Fall Entrepreneurship Program. They are committed to solving the problem of consumers finding products in the huge second-hand market and providing consumers with a more convenient and efficient second-hand product search experience. Encore uses artificial intelligence technology to support natural language search and provide intelligent prompts for an excellent user experience.
After an accidental meeting in a second-hand store, former Apple engineer Alex Ruber and former Twitter and Asana engineer Parth Chopra jointly founded the second-hand product search engine Encore, dedicated to solving the pain points of consumers looking for their favorite products in the huge second-hand market. This emerging startup has been successfully selected into Y Combinator’s first-ever fall startup program.
The two first met on Y Combinator’s founder-matching platform and bumped into each other while shopping at a thrift store. As tech workers with immigrant backgrounds, the two founders are keen on hunting for treasures in thrift stores. This common interest gave them the idea of developing a professional second-hand product search tool.
The entire second-hand shopping market is very fragmented. There are hundreds of resources on the market, such as Depop, Mercari, ThredUp, eBay, Craigslist and many more. It's difficult for consumers to sift through all the resources to find the products they need, Ruber said in an interview. The project also held a special personal sentiment for him, as my mother used to take me to the flea market every Sunday. I bought a lot of stuff from those places, including a piano. The core idea behind both the flea market and Encore is to find a hidden gem.
Encore uses artificial intelligence technology to allow users to search for products from multiple platforms such as Poshmark, the RealReal, Grailed, Etsy and eBay through natural language. Users can even type in specific search requests like show me the dress Emily wore in Emily in Paris Season 3 Episode 4. The platform also provides smart tips such as clothing inspiration and shopping from the show to help users make better use of the search function.
Data shows that Encore handles more than 50,000 searches every month, with search volume increasing by 26% month-on-month and clicks increasing by 15% month-on-month. Currently, the platform mainly generates revenue through alliance sharing, and is testing a $3 monthly subscription service to provide users with value-added services such as advanced search functions, image search, and customer support.
As the second-hand retail market continues to expand, analysts predict that the US second-hand retail market will reach US$73 billion by 2028, and the global scale will reach US$350 billion. According to a ThredUp report, online second-hand resale will account for half of the second-hand market by 2025. Against this market background, Encore’s innovative search solutions will undoubtedly bring new vitality to the rapidly developing second-hand goods market.
Encore’s success lies not only in its innovative search technology, but also in the two founders’ love and deep understanding of the second-hand market. It is believed that in the future, Encore will occupy a place in the field of second-hand product search and bring consumers a more convenient and pleasant shopping experience.