CarWoo Hires Former AOL Autos & Dealix Execs; New Funding Completed
While also revealing that it has closed on a $6 million round of funding, CarWoo announced that it has brought on a former AOL Autos executive as chief operating officer and hired a former Dealix exec as vice president of marketing.
Tapped for the COO role is Rudi Thun, who comes over from his post as general manager of AOL Autos. During his nine years there, he led the strategy, product, marketing, editorial, design and development for that website, as well as Autoblog.com.
Meanwhile, hired for the marketing post is Phil Yeh, whose most recent role was serving in the same position at SpeedDate.com. Yeh’s experience includes four years at Dealix. He was the director of marketing and headed up consumer marketing for auto Web portals.
"CarWoo is the most innovative online automotive company I have seen in a long time,” Thun stated. “When the opportunity came to join the CarWoo team, I was eager to jump on board. I truly believe that CarWoo will permanently change the way cars are bought and sold, and I really look forward to being a part of the change.”
CarWoo chief executive officer Tommy McClung added: “Having Rudi and Phil join our team, closing this round of funding and demonstrating the strong progress to date are all great endorsements of what we are doing.
“We have gained significant traction throughout the industry. CarWoo! is supporting over 11,000 dealers, and with our new initiatives in 2012, we are poised to become the foremost online destination for car buyers and sellers alike,” he continued.
Sharing more about the funding, it pushes CarWoo’s total funds to more than $12 million. These additional funds were from a host of investors, including InterWest Partners, Comcast Ventures, Blumberg Capital and Raymond Tonsing, among others.
In light of its dealer network climbing to more than 11,000 stores, CarWoo plans to use the funds to “continue that level of growth with their consumers,” as well as rolling new products, continue developing its team and building partnerships."
“We are excited to be part of such a fast growing company. The trajectory that CarWoo is on with regard to engaging car shoppers, dealers, and automotive manufacturers has accelerated over the last year. CarWoo has positioned themselves as the win-win solution in the industry,” stated Michael Yang, managing director at Comcast Ventures.