From $5 stamp packs on Queen Street to ~$1.5B in VeVe marketplace GMV—New Zealand entrepreneur David Yu built one of the world’s biggest digital collectibles businesses!
David Yu—founder/CEO of VeVe—grew up in Taipei, moved to Auckland, and turned a teenage collecting habit into a retail chain, a global licensing career, and ultimately VeVe, the NFT platform behind 3D, AR-ready drops from top studios and car brands. He explains how years of community-building in hobby stores and a nose for IP deals translated to landing Marvel/DC/Disney, while making onboarding “frictionless” for mainstream collectors.
We dig into real numbers and roadmap: ~600k funded/holding accounts, ~250k MAU, ~$1.45–1.5B+ secondary GMV, $300–400M primary sales, 4.5M+ digital comics, the launch of VVverse, and why the next wave is a creator economy built on fandom + AI. Plus: the first 3D Steamboat Willie, how to pitch licensors when the category “doesn’t exist,” and why Gen Z will value digital scarcity like previous generations prized paper comics.
🌏 From Taipei to New Zealand: retail → licensing → VV founder journey.
🧪 “Frictionless” onboarding and why Web3 UX has to feel Web2.
🤝 Pitching Disney/Marvel/DC when NFTs “sounded like a scam.”
📊 VV by the numbers: users, GMV, comics, brands, and AR features.
🏗️ VVverse and the rise of creator-built shops, galleries, and car dealers.
🚗 Licensing playbook: from Pokémon cards to Maserati/Lamborghini in AR.
🧠 AI’s role in content generation, NPCs, and smarter collecting.
Connect with the Guest
David Yu – LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/davidyunzCompany (VeVe): https://www.veve.me
Learn more about NZVC & Hosts
NZVC: https://www.nzvc.co.nz
Mark Pavlyukovskyy: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pavlyukovskyy/
Hendrik Remigereau: https://www.linkedin.com/in/hendrik-remigereau-09a03067/00:00:00 — Intro
00:02:26 — Origin: Taipei → Auckland; collecting → first businesses
00:09:39 — Pokémon boom & the power of community
00:19:04 — Expanding to Asia: China exports (WFOE) & licensing lessons
00:22:01 — Bentley stroller case — fighting grey-market/daigou
00:36:55 — From blockchain to CryptoKitties: the spark for VeVe
00:41:40 — Why digital collectibles win (space, logistics, Gen Z)
00:47:34 — App Store onboarding: no crypto hurdles
00:54:11 — Pitching Disney/Marvel with mockups & AR demos
00:58:24 — VeVe today: product verticals, key metrics, VV-Verse vision
01:12:43 — Beyond the 2021 hype: NFT recovery & outlook
01:18:55 — 5–15 years ahead: skills & asking AI better questions
01:21:31 — Favorite digital collectible (Steamboat Willie) & wrap-up
If this sharpened your startup/business brain, smash 👍, drop your questions for David below, and subscribe for more New Zealand founder stories.
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