flash sales

Trouble in Paradise: Jetsetter’s Founder and CEO Steps Down

Tricia Duryee in Commerce on May 15 at 5:28 pm PT

Drew Patterson has stepped down as founder and CEO of Jetsetter, the high-end luxury discount sales travel site owned by Gilt Groupe.

News Byte

New Bravo Food Show Partners Up With Gilt Taste

Tricia Duryee in Commerce on May 8 at 8:48 am PT

Bravo Media’s new cooking competition, “Around the World in 80 Plates,” is teaming up with Gilt Taste, an online food marketplace, where fans will be able to purchase products and ingredients featured in each episode. Since Gilt Taste is part of the megaretailer’s flash-sales kingdom, be prepared to sign up in order to visit the special site.

News Byte

Gilt Groupe Snags New Chief Marketing Officer from JustFabulous

Tricia Duryee in Commerce on February 3 at 9:20 am PT

Closely following dozens of layoffs, the Gilt Groupe has appointed Elizabeth Francis to the position of chief marketing officer. Francis will be responsible for acquiring new customers and customer retention across the company’s flash sales sites and full-priced apparel and food sites. Francis takes over the role from Alexis Maybank, a founder of Gilt, who will resume the position of chief strategy officer. Prior to Gilt, Francis was the chief marketing officer at Intelligent Beauty and president of JustFabulous, an online fashion and accessories brand that recently raised $33 million in capital.

Zozi Gets Cozy With Celebrities to Separate Itself From the Groupon Clones

Tricia Duryee in Commerce on January 24 at 9:00 am PT

After slogging it out for two years in the daily deals business and facing competition from Groupon and hundreds of clones, Zozi believes it has started to find its niche.

News Byte

Home Decor Flash Sales Site LuxeYard Raises $3.5 Million in Capital

Tricia Duryee in Commerce on January 23 at 9:01 pm PT

LuxeYard, a home decor flash sales and group-buying site, has secured $3.5 million in new capital from undisclosed investors. The Los Angeles company is also unveiling a redesigned site that allows members to participate in two new ways: First, members can post photos of items that they would like to purchase at a discount; and second, they can drive prices down by encouraging others to buy the product on social networks. The more people who buy it, the less expensive it becomes. LuxeYard will be competing against Gilt Groupe, Rue La La, One Kings Lane, Fab.com and other similar sites.

Gilt Groupe Cuts Include 10 Percent of Employees and Two Executives

Tricia Duryee in Commerce on January 23 at 10:04 am PT

The luxury e-commerce and flash sales site has trimmed roughly 10 percent — as many as 90 — of its employees, including some of its management team.

Expedia Tries Out New Last-Minute Deals Site Relying on User-Generated Data

Tricia Duryee in Commerce on January 19 at 9:58 am PT

Here’s a new twist on flash sales deals in which users — not suppliers — find the best prices for last-minute travel deals.

Gilt Groupe CEO: Restructuring Rumors Overblown, IPO Still on Track

Tricia Duryee in Commerce on January 11 at 9:58 am PT

Kevin Ryan is denying rumors this morning that the luxury e-commerce company is undergoing a massive restructuring; nearly all of its 900 employees and business units remain intact.

Voices

Flash Sale Site Fab.com Lands $200 Million Valuation

Spencer E. Ante, Reporter, The Wall Street Journal in Commerce on December 7, 2011 at 3:04 pm PT

Newly public Internet companies are having a tough time on the stock market this fall, but that hasn’t stopped venture capitalists from making some big bets on start-ups.

Zappos Founder Focuses on Brand Loyalty for His Next Gig

Tricia Duryee in Commerce on November 16, 2011 at 8:12 am PT

As soon as Nike started to sell its merchandise on Zappos, founder Nick Swinmurn stopped wearing Adidas and became a fan — he has about 50 pairs of Nike shoes in his closet.