LINE announces the acquisition of Thai startup “Sellsuki” a social commerce management provider for online social sellers to manage chat and sales with buyers as well as inventory, tracking, and after-sales, all integrated in a single system.

Sellsuki was born in the age of social commerce. Its service meets demands of today’s commerce, which is often conducted through various channels and uniquely centered around social media and chat. It is how Sellsuki has developed expertise in working with LINE@, LINE’s social commerce service.

Mr. Ariya Banomyong, Managing Director of LINE Thailand, said, “Social commerce is a driver of e-Commerce’s growth in Thailand. According to a PWC’s research, social commerce takes up to 51% of the total USD 3.1 billion e-commerce market. The number of social commerce consumers in Thailand is three times higher than the global average. This acquisition will establish a strong foundation for our e-Commerce business in Thailand. After years of collaboration with Sellsuki, we’ve realized the company’s potential, which eventually resulted in this acquisition deal. We are excited to welcome the passionate and talented Sellsuki team to LINE, and support the Thai startup ecosystem.”

The acquisition is effective as of December 6, 2018. Sellsuki’s social commerce staff members have joined LINE Thailand’s team. Mr. Lertad Supadhiloke, Co-Founder and CEO of Sellsuki, is now Head of E-commerce at LINE Thailand. Sellsuki’s social commerce solutions have also completely transferred to LINE while the original company continues to operate its other business services under new management.

Mr. Lertad Supadhiloke, Head of E-commerce at LINE Thailand, said, “Our mission has always been to help businesses grow while staying close with their customers. The vision and attitude of a corporation like LINE made this an easy decision and I believe this is a big statement in support of e-commerce merchants and the startup ecosystem as a whole. We are excited to scale our mission at LINE by creating new technologies and services to satisfy the needs of Thai people with no limits.”

“We’re confident that this acquisition will lead to a new dimension of e-commerce services from LINE under the leadership of Mr. Lertad. This team of skilled developers understands the needs of the Thai e-commerce market, and they will be creating new services that will surely assist and cater to the demands of Thai users and sellers,” concluded Mr. Ariya.

About LINE Corporation

Based in Japan, LINE Corporation is dedicated to the mission of “Closing the Distance,” bringing together information, services and people. The LINE messaging app launched in June 2011 and since then has grown into a diverse, global ecosystem that includes AI technology, FinTech and more.