– Taesoo Kim, former CPO of Gmarket with 24 years of experience in e-commerce, joins as CEO
– Commerce business advancement and global expansion in full swing with individual representative system
– Expanding Grip into a ‘commerce creator platform’ and establishing a next-generation e-commerce model
Grip Company (CEO Kim Hanna), the operator of the live commerce shopping app ‘Grip’, announced on the 19th that it has appointed former Gmarket CPO (Chief Product Officer) Kim Tae-soo as its respective representative in order to strengthen specialized leadership in response to rapidly changing market conditions. Through this appointment, Grip Company plans to leap forward as a ‘commerce creator platform’ that reflects the next-generation commerce trend and accelerate its advance into the global market.
The new CEO, Kim Tae-soo, is an expert who has led platform innovation with over 24 years of experience in the e-commerce industry in various fields such as product development, sales, marketing, and corporate strategy. He joined Gmarket in 2000 and served as CPO and head of sales headquarters, leading the growth of the domestic e-commerce platform, and gained global market experience at eBay Australia.
In particular, the 'Big Smile Day' he oversaw has become a nationwide shopping festival, and is evaluated as a strategic campaign that goes beyond a simple discount event by maximizing synergy with the membership service 'Smile Club'. He is known for his leadership that accurately understands market changes and customer needs and presents realistic yet highly feasible solutions.
At Grip Company, CEO Taesoo Kim will be in charge of the commerce business and platform advancement, and will focus on providing differentiated user experiences and building a new creator-centered commerce ecosystem.
Kim Hanna, founder and CEO of Grip Company, focuses on establishing a strategy for future commerce creators and global expansion under the individual representative system. She plans to diversify services so that creators can work more creatively and effectively, and strengthen global partnerships to generate results in overseas markets.
Grip Company will expand its platform beyond 'live commerce' to a creator-centered commerce model this year. It will strengthen its matching service so that anyone can generate revenue on the platform even if they do not own products, and will reorganize the platform so that anyone can work as a creator by utilizing various contents such as shorts and images in addition to live broadcasts. Through this, it plans to lower the platform entry barrier and support various functions so that creators with commerce fandoms can grow their own communities.
Grip Company launched the industry's first live commerce 'Grip' in 2018, and first implemented the live commerce screen configuration and functions that are now industry standards. As of October 2024, it has surpassed 10 million cumulative installations, and as of December of the same year, it has recorded 1.3 million cumulative live broadcasts and 600 million cumulative views, continuing high growth every year. In addition, it operates a B2B SaaS 'Grip Cloud' business that provides live commerce solutions.
Kim Tae-soo, CEO of Grip Company, said, “Grip has established a unique position by providing differentiated live commerce experiences to customers and sellers,” and “We will expand this further in the future to build a new creator-centered commerce ecosystem and establish Grip’s own new identity.”
Kim Hanna, CEO of Grip Company, said, “Now is the time to move beyond live commerce to a commerce model that more closely connects creators and consumers.” She added, “Through the individual representative system, we will increase platform competitiveness based on in-depth market understanding and solidify our position in the global market.”
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