New Paradigm Investment makes pre-Series A investment in Itfluencer

New Paradigm Investment Co., Ltd. announced on the 8th that it had made a pre-Series A investment in influencer marketing platform Itfluencer Co., Ltd.

Founded in February 2019, Itfluencer operates a media platform that uses big data analysis to identify two-way connections between brands and influencers, automatically match advertisers with the best-fit influencers, and deliver strong campaign results. It is the first platform in the industry to do so.

Itfluencer has also built a pipeline of advertiser deals tailored to its advertising business and employs specialists to propose and manage influencer campaigns.

Since launching, Itfluencer has run more than 1,500 campaigns for over 400 brand advertisers. Brand renewal rates have remained above 80%, reflecting high client satisfaction. The company was recently selected as a partner for Naver Brand Connect, an advertising-matching service featuring top influencers.

With this investment, Itfluencer plans to build partnerships with major MCN operators and expand its ability to source mega influencers, aiming to achieve full influencer coverage and strengthen its platform’s competitiveness.

“Influencers with a strong presence on social media are emerging as a driving force in online commerce, and influencer marketing is becoming increasingly active,” said Park Je-hyun, CEO of New Paradigm Investment. “Our investment reflects the strong growth potential of the influencer-centered commerce market, Itfluencer’s proprietary automated system for connecting brands and influencers, and its differentiated big-data-based ad tech capabilities.” Park added, “We expect the company to grow into one of Korea’s leading MCN management companies by combining influencer media-based advertising with brand commerce.”

“Our goal is to grow from a big-data-driven advertising business that automatically matches advertisers with the best-fit influencers into an influencer-centered commerce platform where customers become fans—what we call ‘fansumers’ (fans + consumers),” said Lee Jang-won, CEO of Itfluencer.