Daily Deals Sector Steams Up with a Few Buys of its Own

It is evident that the daily deals industry is hot. Just ask Groupon with revenue of $760 million last year. The first half of 2011 has passed, and already a lot of things have happened in this sector. Daily deals companies have made significant moves to stay alive, and also thrive.

Just recently, Lot18, New York based company known for providing insider access for wine and epicurean products, is going gourmet. They are now providing information on the best deals of gourmet food to match their wine offers.

“As with small winemakers, boutique food producers face challenges generating awareness for their brands,” said Philip James, co-founder and president of Lot18. “Just as we connect our rapidly growing member base to the best in wine, we will now offer them access to the best small producers and farmers.”

Meanwhile, DealsGoRound, an online outlet for reselling secondhand Groupon, LivingSocial and other daily deals coupons, launches Deal Wallet. This enables users to manage their purchased coupons. This is ideal for users who couldn’t keep track of their purchased coupons. A weekly notice will be sent to users informing them of coupon details including the expiry date. With just a click, a coupon can be listed for sale in the DealsGoRound marketplace. An online version is first launched and a mobile version will soon to follow.

After beefing up its marketing and monetization, LivingSocial makes its presence felt overseas by acquiring Indonesian based company DealKeren and parent company Ensogo (which offer daily deals in Thailand and Philippines). To penetrate into the Middle East, LivingSocial also acquired GoNabit (which operates in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Lebanon, Jordan and Kuwait). LivingSocial also announced that they are introducing daily deals in the Netherlands.

In a statement,   Tim O’Shaughnessy, CEO and co-founder, LivingSocial said, “We are excited to enter the dynamic Asian market and our presence in the Middle East and the Netherlands further strengthens our strategic global efforts to bring LivingSocial values to members across the globe.”