Case Study: Canon Australia launches Kyōyū camera-sharing fast and reduces marketplace unknowns with Sharetribe Flex

Canon - Customer Case Study

Canon Australia created Kyōyū, its first camera-sharing platform, to make high-quality photography gear more accessible and deepen its community engagement. The team wanted to move quickly into the market but hadn’t built a marketplace before and needed reliable booking and payment functionality. To reduce unknowns and accelerate launch, Canon partnered with Sharetribe and used Sharetribe Flex.

Sharetribe delivered the marketplace infrastructure via Flex, enabling Canon to launch Kyōyū in Australia in March 2019 and start learning from real users right away. The platform has received strong positive feedback, helping owners monetize unused gear, allowing photographers to try equipment before buying, and strengthening community interaction—outcomes Canon attributes to the speed, reduced risk, and marketplace expertise provided by Sharetribe.

Canon

Anthony Cortis

Product Manager