SmallBusinessExecutiveInforming, Inspiring and Connecting Businesses
Bankers bearish on U.S. IPO market: BDO
While early projections for IPOs in 2012 aren’t promising, Lee Graul of BDO USA points out that investor confidence can change quickly. By Ann Meyer The bull IPO market that many were predicting a year ago might take a bit longer to materialize. While Groupon made headlines when it raised about $800 million in a [...]
Through social media, small businesses connect, promote and learn
By Hillary Markow Jewish Business News – Six months before it opened its doors for business, Uva Spa & Wine Boutique had Facebook fans. Less than a year later, it was working with a daily-deal site to market its products and services. The company’s low-cost social media strategy paid off early on, with 60 percent [...]
Groupon adds female Google exec as COO
Groupon has hired Margo Georgiadis, vice president of global sales planning and technology at Google, as its new chief operating officer, Crain’s Chicago Business reported. Georgiadis will take the place of Rob Solomon, a former Yahoo marketing executive who last month announced plans to leave Groupon to return to Silicon Valley. Georgiadis, who currently oversees [...]
Incubators help Chicago startups share costs
By Hallie Busta
When Nicolas Ibarzabal isn’t selling empanadas out of his newly launched food truck, he’s preparing his Argentine fare in a shared-used kitchen on the city’s West Side.
As co-owner of 5411 Empanadas, Ibarzabal joins a growing number of Chicago-area entrepreneurs setting up in shared facilities that charge less rent and offer more services than typical office buildings. The facilities run the gamut from traditional business incubators to fashion studios.
Groupon to go mobile: Crain’s
Groupon plans to launch a mobile location-based version of its daily deals, Crain’s Chicago Business reported today. One out of four Groupon users access the company’s deals on their mobile phones, Crain’s reported. Soon they will be able to receive Groupon deals based on the location of their phones. Groupon competitor LivingSocial launched a similar concept in [...]
Deal site drawbacks spawn new startups
By Ann Meyer Count Chicago entrepreneur Kris Petersen among those who have lost money on Groupon and LivingSocial vouchers by not redeeming them before they expired. The example that stands out, Petersen said, was his purchase of four Groupons for Segway tours that he planned to use with friends. “I threw $160 out the window by [...]
Groupon, other deal sites move upscale
Social buying websites including Chicago-based Groupon are targeting higher-income customers by offering more upscale deals, Bloomberg News reported. “We are finding that people move up and down between categories: Sometimes they want a sandwich, and sometimes, a $100 meal,” Rob Solomon, president of Groupon, told Bloomberg News. “There’s a lot of interest in the luxury category,” [...]
Patience pays off for firms that say `no’ to suitors
Groupon’s decision not to sell to Google last year might be a good omen. A New York Times article relates several recent examples of companies that have resisted takeover offers and watched their stock rally far beyond the buyout offer. Canadian-based Potash Corp., which considered a $130 share offer from BHP in November, saw its [...]
Groupon’s value could be $15 billion; co. heads to China
Groupon news-of-the-day: The local deal-of-the-day site that also has been generating its own news-of-the-day might be worth $15 billion in an initial public offering, Sandra Guy reported in a detailed column about the company in the Sun-Times. Guy also cites NeXtup research, which pegs Groupon stock at $40 per share based on an offering of [...]
News digest: Groupon makes waves, snow day policies, new domain suffixes
Groupon takes a chance on prime time. Chicago-based Groupon raised eyebrows with a series of Super Bowl commercials that proved controversial. The company ended up yanking the ads Monday afternoon, NBC news reported in its Local Beat feature. The “Save the Money” series ads were meant as spoofs on celebrity public service announcements, the company [...]
