LivingSocial Jumps on Social Shopping Down Under, Invests Nearly $5M in Jump On It
LivingSocial announced an investment of nearly $5 million, acquiring a good portion of shares in Jump On It. As an online source for people to find handpicked experiences at a great value, LivingSocial’s venture goals around Jump On It, the Australia-based social shopping site, means it has positioned itself very well in the Australian market, with 10 million subscribers in over a hundred markets across the globe. With $1 million in daily earnings, revenue is expected to skyrocket to $500 million in 2011. It’s branded Daily Deals are also available in US, Canada, UK and Ireland, thanks to the fact that it’s spent most of this year growing its market reach.
“Having Jump On It as part of the team is an incredible opportunity for us to get started in Australia, and to offer our curated experiences to more consumers in more locations,” said Eric Eichmann, COO of LivingSocial. “We’ve had extraordinary growth this year – and we continue to look for opportunities to grow even further, both domestically and internationally. Our growth and revenue numbers are clear indicators that our business model, our relationship with local merchants and our customer service make us the top choice when consumers seek unique experiences in their area.”
Living Social features one special offer and one bonus deal a day which requires a specific number of people to purchase the deal within 24 hours for it to be availed. They offer 50% to 70% off on local services including spa treatments, restaurant and such. In addition to the discounts is a $10 bonus when your invited friends make their first purchase. Living Social now has 550,000 fans on Facebook and 1.2 million Australians reached via email and Facebook on a daily basis.
“We are very excited to join the LivingSocial team and be part of its launch in Australia,” said Colin Fabig, CEO of Jump On It. “Together we will lead the social shopping sector by offering consumers more and varied deals in their area, and by giving local merchants a one-stop shop for new customers across these two great websites.”
This is part of Living Social’s investments and global expansion. The move was started by their dispersion in 25 major cities in United states, followed by the acquisition of Urban Escape. And it’s not just Living Social, other retail tools are making investments too like Gilt’s acquisition of Bergine. Social shopping is becoming big business in many sectors of technology’s growth, with Google launching Boutiques.com today as well. Of more direct impact to LivingSocial’s goals for expansion is the steady rise of Groupon, which teamed with Yahoo for local deals.
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