Japan's Mercari opens centre of excellence in Bengaluru, its first in India

E-commerce firm aims to double its workforce in India to more than 80 employees

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Japanese e-commerce major Mercari has set up its first Global Centre of Excellence (GCoE) in Bengaluru as part of its expansion plans and foray into the Indian market. India is the third country where Mercari has a presence in, after Japan and the United States.
 

The company aims to double its workforce in India to more than 80 employees in the next one year. Globally, it has a total headcount of about 2,000 employees. The India team will focus on core product engineering building applications for backend, mobile development, infrastructure, and others.

Listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, Mercari claims to be Japan’s largest community-powered marketplace with over 22 million active users in Japan.

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“Working closely with the Japanese development team, which includes members from over 50 countries worldwide, Mercari India fosters an environment of cross-functional teamwork and knowledge-sharing,” said the company in a statement.

“Today marks a remarkable milestone in Mercari’s journey as we further expand our footprint in India. The inauguration of our new Center of Excellence underscores Mercari’s commitment to nurturing innovation and technical expertise on a global scale. With our growing team of talented professionals in India, we are ideally positioned to drive technological breakthroughs and deliver exceptional experiences to our customers worldwide,” said Ken Wakasa, vice-president and group chief technology officer, Mercari.

Wakasa added that Mercari started hiring technology talent about 5-6 years ago and India has been one of the biggest regions from where it has been able to hire tech talent.

“Over the past year, our team of highly skilled tech talents has played a pivotal role in driving innovation and enabling Mercari’s growth,” said Vish Magapu, senior director and site lead of Mercari India. “Our objective is to establish Mercari as a global tech powerhouse by leveraging the potential that India’s diverse talent pool offers…Our India CoE is committed to developing applications for Mercari Japan reinforcing our dedication to delivering seamless user experiences worldwide.”

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