WalmartLabs Acquires Luvocracy to Enhance Social Shopping Experience
Key Acquisition Strengthens Walmart’s E-Commerce Capabilities
Walmart’s Silicon Valley-based R&D division, WalmartLabs, has announced its 14th startup acquisition: Luvocracy, a Kleiner Perkins-backed social marketplace. This strategic move brings 16 Luvocracy team members—including founder and CEO Nathan Stoll—to Walmart’s e-commerce headquarters in San Bruno, California.
About Luvocracy: A Pinterest-Inspired Marketplace
Founded in 2011 by Stoll (previously known for selling Aardvark to Google), Luvocracy operated as a social product recommendation platform, allowing users to:
- Discover trending items through trusted connections
- Share and “love” products via mobile apps (iOS and Android)
- Utilize a built-in “Buy it for Me” purchasing feature
Despite competition from Pinterest, Fancy, and Wanelo, Luvocracy distinguished itself with its direct commerce integration and $11 million in funding from prominent investors including Kleiner Perkins, Google Ventures, and Marissa Mayer.
Why Walmart Acquired Luvocracy
This acquisition primarily focuses on talent acquisition rather than product integration. Notable Luvocracy team members joining WalmartLabs include:
- Brooke Thompson (VP of Design) - Former Yahoo Senior Design Director
- Ajay Agrawal (VP of Engineering) - Ex-eBay/Microsoft/Oracle executive
- Christine Martinez (Creative Director) - Pinterest influencer with 5M+ followers
The Luvocracy service will be discontinued, with the team transitioning to work on Walmart.com’s product discovery and social shopping features.
Strategic Impact on Walmart’s E-Commerce Growth
Stoll emphasized the opportunity:
“There’s no bigger stage in commerce than Walmart… their global e-commerce organization has enormous untapped potential.”
This acquisition continues WalmartLabs’ pattern of technology-driven acquisitions to compete with Amazon, including:
- Kosmix (search engine technology)
- Torbit (site optimization)
- Inkiru (predictive analytics)
- Adchemy (adtech)
Looking Ahead: Social Commerce Innovation
The Luvocracy team will focus on enhancing:
- Social product discovery
- Personalized recommendations
- Mobile shopping experiences
While financial terms remain undisclosed, this acquisition signals Walmart’s continued investment in blending social engagement with e-commerce at scale.
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