[UP&DOWN] Part-time Job Recruitment Platform Nideo, Investment Attraction Boom

Part-time Job Matching Platform 'Geupgu'
Popular Real-time Mobile Connections
Work Contract Creation and Recommendations via App
Market Expansion through Errand Services

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Jaehee] Despite the drying up of funding due to global interest rate hikes and other factors making it difficult for startups to attract investment, there is a company that has successfully completed its Series B funding round. It is Needer, the operator of the real-time part-time job matching platform 'Geupgu'.

According to the investment banking (IB) industry on the 21st, Needer recently completed a Series B investment round worth 7 billion KRW. This comes about a year and a half after completing its Series A funding in July 2020. New investors in this round include The Wells Investment, Kona Investment, Hana Ventures, CJ Investment, and Wanted Lab. Existing investors such as Korea Investment Partners, BNK Venture Investment, and K-Bridge Ventures also made additional investments.

Geupgu is a mobile-based platform that connects businesses in need of part-time workers with job seekers looking for part-time work in real time.

There are many platforms that match businesses and job seekers. However, the reason Needer was able to grow rapidly is that it effectively targeted a niche market. Businesses may suddenly need to find part-time workers. It is difficult to find experienced workers immediately when labor needs to be deployed right away. Needer focused on this point.

One famous episode is the three-month survey conducted by visiting major commercial districts in Busan. By going door-to-door, they carefully asked business owners questions such as "How do you find people when you need short-term jobs?", "How do you handle no-shows by part-time workers?", and "What type of workers do you prefer?" to conduct market research.

The differentiation strategy was found in mobile and data. While existing platforms were mostly just internet sites converted into mobile apps, Needer made it possible to complete the entire hiring process with just a few smartphone taps. From sending job offers to job seekers, creating mobile labor contracts, attendance management, issuing withholding tax receipts, to salary transfers, all processes can be easily handled through the app. It is evaluated that they pioneered the short-term job market by utilizing real-time notifications and mobile-optimized features.

Another distinguishing feature from other job platforms is the introduction of a job seeker evaluation and recommendation system. It allows sharing of evaluation information given by other businesses, such as what kind of work the job seeker has done in the past and whether they had any no-shows. Based on this, businesses can be recommended suitable job seekers according to region, experience, and other criteria.

Especially with the rise of the 'gig economy' brought on by COVID-19, a new business model has taken root in the job market, leading to rapid growth in demand for the 'Geupgu' service. It became a new hiring model for self-employed business owners who found hiring difficult due to COVID-19, which became a growth driver.

In fact, Needer stated that the number of job postings increased from about 100 per month at launch to about 5,000 per month as more self-employed business owners sought to hire short-term part-time workers during COVID-19.

Geupgu has partnered with Baemin Jangbu, Baemin Connect, BGF Retail, Coupang Logistics, and others for feature integration and workforce information provision. Currently, through additional partnerships with T-Order, Cash Note, Kitchen Valley, and others, it is expanding its connections with self-employed business owners.

Geupgu is expanding its services from short-term part-time jobs to lifestyle errands. In the past month, the number of errand requests exceeded 5,000, with over 600 applicants. It also provides services such as prescription medication pickup for those undergoing home treatment due to COVID-19 infection.

Shin Hyunsik, CEO of Needer, said, "This investment is meaningful as it recognizes us as the most competitive service among short-term labor recruitment services," adding, "Especially since the investment was secured in a difficult environment, we will focus on the growth of Geupgu and expansion into various services."

Going forward, Geupgu plans to develop various services targeting self-employed business owners to provide them with more diverse management functions. It is also preparing to expand into B2B business by introducing part-time hiring functions at the headquarters level.