Failed Marketplace Startups
65 venture-backed marketplace startups have shut down after raising $2.4B combined — about 3% of the entire graveyard. The biggest cohort last raised in 2022, and the most common final round was Seed.
Marketplaces die of chicken-and-egg starvation: subsidizing both sides burns capital fast, and when the next round does not come, liquidity evaporates before the network effect arrives.
The Damage, by the Numbers
$5.4M
Median raised before shutdown
$36.7M
Average raised — the big flameouts drag it up
4
Died holding $100M+ in funding
0
Raised $1B+ and still closed
Class of the crash
Closed marketplace startups by year of their final funding round
23
30
7
5
2021
$1.3B
2022
$928.5M
2023
$139.5M
2024
$17.0M
How far they got
Last round raised before shutting down
Pre-Seed
8
Seed
20
Series A
10
Series B
4
Series C+
3
Post-IPO
1
Debt & Notes
4
Other
15
Based on the last five years of fundraising data tracked in the VCbacked database.
The Graveyard
Showing 100 of 65 closed startups
Company | Raised | Last Round | What They Did | Location | Founders | Site | Contact |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Heyday | $800.0M | Series C | Heyday offers a digital marketplace space built for sellers to accelerate consumer product brands. | San Francisco, California, United States | Adam R. Gerchen | Reveal | |
Shift | $504.0M | Post-IPO | Shift is an online marketplace for buying and selling used cars. | San Francisco, California, United States | Christian Ohler | Reveal | |
Pollen | $250.5M | Series C | Pollen is a technology company building, curating, and delivering the best experiences all over the world. | London, England, United Kingdom | Callum Negus-Fancey | Reveal | |
Tradesy | $187.7M | Series D | Tradesy is the peer-to-peer luxury fashion resale platform in the US. | Culver City, California, United States | John Hall | Reveal | |
Pachama | $88.3M | Series B | Pachama harnesses AI and satellite data to empower companies to confidently invest in nature. | San Francisco, California, United States | Diego Saez-Gil, Tomas Aftalion | Reveal | |
Abound | $63.8M | Series B | Abound is a marketplace that helps entrepreneurs gain the insights and connections needed to place their products on retail shelves. | New York, New York, United States | Bill Shope | Reveal | |
RECUR | $55.0M | Series A | RECUR designs and develops on-chain branded experiences for fans to buy, collect, and re-sell NFTs. | Miami, Florida, United States | Max Bruch | Reveal | |
Kaiyo | $43.0M | Series B | Kaiyo is an online marketplace that offers pre-owned furniture with sustainable design and provides pickup and delivery services. | New York, New York, United States | Alpay Koralturk | Reveal | |
Lantern | $40.0M | Seed | Lantern is the cannabis e-commerce marketplace and on-demand delivery platform. | Grand Rapids, Michigan, United States | Justin Robinson | Reveal | |
ProntoPro | $32.3M | Venture | ProntoPro is a marketplace that connects people in need with artisans and professional workers and small businesses. | Milano, Lombardia, Italy | Marco Ogliengo | Reveal | |
MakersPlace | $32.0M | Series A | MakersPlace is an authentic and unique digital creation platform powered by blockchain technology for digital creators. | San Francisco, California, United States | Yash Nelapati | Reveal | |
LEX Markets | $27.5M | Series A | LEX Markets is a commercial real estate securities marketplace that takes commercial buildings public through single-asset IPOs. | New York, New York, United States | Dean Sterrett | Reveal | |
Quidd | $19.8M | Series A | Quidd is the marketplace for buying and selling digital collectibles. Over 2.1B assets issued. Backed by Sequoia. | New York, New York, United States | Erich Wood | Reveal | |
Nori | $18.8M | Venture | Nori is a carbon dioxide removal marketplace that aims to reverse climate change. | Seattle, Washington, United States | Christophe Jospe | Reveal | |
CUDONI | $17.8M | Series B | Europe's only full-service luxury resale platform. Effortlessly buy and sell authentic designer items at up to 90% off retail price. | London, England, United Kingdom | James Harford-Tyrer | Reveal | |
abillion | $17.0M | Series A | We're a passionate team unified by our mission to build the most engaged community for sustainability in the world. | Singapore, Central Region, Singapore | Vikas Garg | Reveal | |
Allset | $16.6M | Note | Allset is a food ordering platform that offers cost-effective solutions to both restaurants and consumers. | Los Angeles, California, United States | Anna Polishchuk | Reveal | |
Aalto | $13.0M | Series A | Aalto is a real estate platform that offers home buying and selling services. | San Francisco, California, United States | Nick Narodny | Reveal | |
Katoo | $10.7M | Seed | Katoo creates tools to make the food supply chain efficient, fair, and transparent. | Madrid, Madrid, Spain | Diogo Cunha | Reveal | |
Lemox | $10.1M | Series A | Lemox is a real estate investment firm that bridges the gap between traditional markets and the decentralized economy. | Long Beach, California, United States | Peter Aman | Reveal | |
Queenly | $9.4M | Program | The leading marketplace for formalwear | San Francisco, California, United States | Kathy Zhou | Reveal | |
Jetaport | $8.7M | Venture | Jetaport is a group booking marketplace. | New York, New York, United States | Jason Shames | Reveal | |
MilkRun | $8.6M | Series A | MilkRun is an online marketplace and grocery delivery service that connects consumers and Chefs directly with hundreds of local farmers. | Portland, Oregon, United States | John Zeller | Reveal | |
GoWild | $8.3M | Seed | Social commerce platform driven by a data-driven shopping experience that makes outdoor activities easy to learn & fun to share | Louisville, Kentucky, United States | Brad Luttrell | Reveal | |
Liquid MarketPlace | $8.0M | Series A | Liquid MarketPlace facilitates buying and selling of high-valued collectibles. | Toronto, Ontario, Canada | Amin Nikdel | Reveal | |
Vuulr | $7.6M | Note | Vuulr is a global rights transaction platform transforming the Film & TV Industry | Singapore, Central Region, Singapore | Ben Flint | Reveal | |
Oico | $7.1M | Seed | Oico is a B2B marketplace for construction materials in Brazil. | São Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil | Pedro Dellagnelo | Reveal | |
Pinemelon | $7.0M | Venture | Vertically integrated farmers’ market + local-first online supermarket | Denver, Colorado, United States | Alexey Lee | Reveal | |
gem.xyz | $7.0M | Seed | gem.xyz discover & buy NFTs across all marketplaces. | Singapore, Central Region, Singapore | — | Reveal | |
Shoptrue | $6.0M | Seed | Shoptrue is a consumer-facing fashion marketplace offering a personalized shopping experience. | Salt Lake City, Utah, United States | Romney Evans | Reveal | |
Cortina | $6.0M | Seed | Cortina Helps eCommerce Brands Sell Complementary Products without Inventory or Capital Risk | New York, New York, United States | Brooke Cundiff | Reveal | |
Sooper | $5.9M | Seed | Sooper is a managed B2B marketplace that connects building materials retailers with suppliers, making B2B commerce convenient and easy. | São Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil | Hygor Dupin | Reveal | |
The Edit LDN | $5.4M | Angel | The Edit LDN is an online store designed to offer streetwear and limited-edition footwear. | London, England, United Kingdom | — | Reveal | |
Yume Food Australia | $3.3M | Seed | Yume Food is a brand new marketplace | South Melbourne, Victoria, Australia | Katy Barfield | Reveal | |
CatX | $3.2M | Program | CatX is the exchange for trading and transferring risk. | Dover, Delaware, United States | Benedict Altier | Reveal | |
GalaxE by HODL Assets | $3.0M | Seed | GalaxE NFT aggregator platform, was the first to facilitate the creation, buying, and selling of non-fungible tokens on multiple blockchains | San Francisco, California, United States | Aj Bosch | Reveal | |
SELLinALL | $3.0M | Corporate | SELLinALL offers a complete suite of integrated solution that helps online merchants sell well and sell more. | Singapore, Central Region, Singapore | Mallikarjun Yagnavajulla | Reveal | |
Vidia | $2.7M | Seed | Vidia is a digital marketplace that allows the purchase of surgeries by individuals without access to health plans. | São Paulo, Sao Paulo, Brazil | Thiago Bonini | Reveal | |
Handsome App | $2.2M | Grant | Handsome App is a career and education marketplace for the beauty industry. | Austin, Texas, United States | April Dominguez | Reveal | |
IN-HOUSE | $2.2M | Seed | IN-HOUSE is a next-generation online marketplace for fashion to search, discover, and shop apparel brands. | New York, New York, United States | Maz Obuz | Reveal | |
Bootup | $2.1M | Seed | Bootup creates a marketplace for tech talent. | Miami, Florida, United States | — | Reveal | |
GuruCall | $2.0M | Pre-Seed | World knowledge marketplace where World Leaders will help and share there experience with others. | Madrid, Madrid, Spain | Felix Ruiz Hernandez | Reveal | |
NextGem | $1.8M | Seed | NextGem is a social & passion marketplace for sports card investors. | Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States | Dave Anderson | Reveal | |
Merged Software | $1.8M | Seed | Merged Software is involved in SaaS, eSignature, Blockchain, Marketplace, Collaboration, Distributed Finance | Alpharetta, Georgia, United States | Jack Berube | Reveal | |
Karfu | $1.5M | Crowdfund | Karfu was developing a platform for impartial vehicle and mobility comparisons, focused on helping consumers make informed choices. | London, England, United Kingdom | Dominic Thomas | Reveal | |
SOCSWAP | $1.5M | Undisclosed | Social Media Support Service | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States | — | Reveal | |
Flavers(formerly Cook My Grub) | $1.5M | Venture | Flavers online marketplace offers customers the choice of over 15 world cuisines, and 500+ dishes created by 100+ home chefs. | Maidenhead, Windsor and Maidenhead, United Kingdom | Dinesh Patil | Reveal | |
DESIGN MARKET | $1.4M | Seed | DESIGN MARKET is a Marketplace for second hand vintage furniture. The website gathers thousands of design professionals online. | Paris, Ile-de-France, France | Lionel Obadia | Reveal | |
PetPair | $1.4M | Pre-Seed | A content-powered marketplace for pet adoptions. | Austin, Texas, United States | Daniel Miyares | Reveal | |
DishDivvy | $1.3M | Pre-Seed | DishDivvy is an online marketplace connecting approve private home cooks with hungry neighbors looking for homemade, wholesome food. | Los Angeles, California, United States | Ani Torosyan | Reveal | |
FarmRaiser, inc | $1.1M | Series A | FarmRaiser offers a turnkey product fundraising solution and marketplace for healthy fundraising options. Also available as a white label. | Richmond, Virginia, United States | Mark Abbott | Reveal | |
neu | $1.1M | Seed | neu is a reliable platform that provides quality cleans, on-demand. | Seattle, Washington, United States | Claudius Mbemba | Reveal | |
EdilGo | $1.0M | Debt | EdilGo is a SaaS-enabled marketplace for construction. Its unique AI solution is able to automate the procurement process in construction. | Milan, Lombardia, Italy | Carlo Andrea Guatterini | Reveal | |
Obsesh | $1.0M | Seed | The athlete creator digital coaching and community platform | Los Angeles, California, United States | Jonalyn Morris | Reveal | |
Revolancer | $698K | Grant | Revolancer is a freelance marketplace connecting ambitious businesses with skilled freelancers. | Caerphilly, Caerphilly, United Kingdom | Ewa Gorka | Reveal | |
Paway | $625K | Undisclosed | #1 platform for pet professionals to start, scale, and sell their business! | Los Angeles, California, United States | Angel Lacret | Reveal | |
Allobee | $601K | Seed | Allobee is an entrepreneur marketplace that provides truly flexible work to those who have abandoned the traditional. | Durham, North Carolina, United States | Brooke Markevicius | Reveal | |
Loppo | $600K | Pre-Seed | Marketplace to Rent Commercial Properties ("QuintoAndar B2B") | Pinheiros, Sao Paulo, Brazil | Guilherme Pinho | Reveal | |
DGI Apparel | $500K | Pre-Seed | DGI Apparel is a B2B marketplace where custom screenprinters can get all the resources they need to run their business. | New York, New York, United States | Daniel R. Shkreli, Grant Fuhr, Ian Hinkley | Reveal | |
Colecti | $490K | Pre-Seed | Colecti offers data-driven solutions for businesses, enabling smarter decisions through analytics. | Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands | Jurre Machielsen | Reveal | |
Quik.com | $350K | Pre-Seed | Quik.com is a leading NFT domain name marketplace that provides the most exclusive top-level domains like .metaverse, .web3, .VR and others. | London, England, United Kingdom | Sahil Kohli | Reveal | |
OrcaSmart Group | $300K | Pre-Seed | An AI-driven marketplace and interactive collaboration platform for Packaging Suppliers & Brands | Centerport, New York, United States | Christopher Daniels | Reveal | |
QuikLiq | $270K | Grant | QuikLiq is a tech-forward digital marketplace that provides access to a selection of wine, beer, and spirits. | Miami Beach, Florida, United States | Mikael Pyles | Reveal | |
Homely | $250K | Venture | Homely is the first on- demand based marketplace in Mexico to match trusted cleaners and users. | Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico | Edgar Tello | Reveal | |
ADmyBRAND | $250K | Note | Stripe for Marketing. ADmyBRAND is end-to-end platform for all types of (traditional & digital) ad-spaces. | San Francisco, California, United States | Sudd Goyal | Reveal |
More From the Graveyard
Frequently Asked Questions
How many marketplace startups have failed?
The VCbacked Startup Graveyard currently tracks 65 venture-backed marketplace startups that have shut down, collectively raising $2.4B before closing. That is roughly 3 percent of all closed companies in the database, which is based on the last five years of fundraising data.
What is the biggest marketplace startup failure?
By total capital raised, the largest marketplace failure in the database is Heyday, which raised $800.0M before shutting down.
Why do marketplace startups fail?
Marketplaces die of chicken-and-egg starvation: subsidizing both sides burns capital fast, and when the next round does not come, liquidity evaporates before the network effect arrives. Across the dataset, the most common last round before shutdown in marketplace was Seed, and the largest cohort of failures last raised in 2022.
Can I contact founders of failed marketplace startups?
Founder names are shown free on this page for every closed marketplace company. VCbacked paid plans reveal verified founder contact details where available and unlock CSV export.