Chotot

Chotot, which translates to "good market" in Vietnamese, is a prominent online classifieds and recommerce platform headquartered in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Established in 2012, the company was initially part of 701Search, a joint venture involving Singapore Press Holding, Schibsted Media, and Telenor. Over the years, its ownership structure evolved, and by 2017, it became fully part of the Telenor Group. Since 2019, Chotot has been a key entity within Carousell Group, one of Southeast Asia's largest marketplace platforms. The current CEO is Nguyen Trong Tan (Jacky), who took the role in 2020.

The platform operates as a consumer-to-consumer (C2C) marketplace, connecting buyers and sellers for a vast array of new and used goods, as well as services. The business model is centered on providing a free-to-list service, making it accessible for individuals to sell items they no longer need. Revenue is likely generated through premium listings, advertising, and value-added services for sellers seeking higher visibility. The platform caters to a broad consumer base in Vietnam, with a reported brand awareness of over 90% and serving more than 10 million users monthly. Chotot's core mission is to facilitate a circular economy by making secondhand items a preferred choice.

Chotot's offerings are extensive, organized into over 60 categories across four main verticals: property, vehicles, jobs, and general goods. This includes everything from electronics, cars, and real estate to fashion, pets, and job postings. The platform has expanded its services by launching specialized sub-brands, including 'Nha Tot' for real estate, 'Cho Tot Xe' for vehicles, and 'Viec Lam Tot' for blue-collar jobs. To build user trust, a significant challenge in the secondhand market, Chotot has introduced features like a protected payment and instant delivery service, which holds a buyer's payment until the transaction is successfully confirmed. The company has also ventured into physical showrooms, such as 'Caraha' for secondhand cars, to provide an offline experience that complements its online listings.

Significant milestones mark Chotot's journey. By 2014, it launched its mobile app, the first of its kind for C2C in Vietnam, and a year later, it reached one million daily visits. In 2021, its vehicle vertical, Cho Tot Xe, hit 16 million monthly visits, and its property arm, Cho Tot Nha, reached 9 million monthly visits. The company has also embraced technological advancements, developing its chat feature into a scalable Software as a Service (SaaS) solution to handle massive user interaction and incorporating AI for features like 'quick post with AI'.

Keywords: online classifieds, recommerce, C2C marketplace, Vietnam e-commerce, secondhand goods, used cars, real estate platform, job listings, circular economy, mobile marketplace, Nha Tot, Cho Tot Xe, Viec Lam Tot, Telenor Group, Carousell Group, Nguyen Trong Tan, peer-to-peer sales, online shopping, digital marketplace, Vietnamese startups