B2B firm to buy CMGI-backed Buyersedge
After less than a year in business, the shopping service is getting ready to announce a sale, the company confirms.
The e-commerce upstart, a shopping service where merchants bid for consumers' business, raised $7.5 million from @Ventures, the investor division of CMGI, and an additional $2.5 million from other investors last July. But it would seem that no amount of money could help garner more interest in the company.
"Buyersedge as a marketplace selling consumers' products is not of interest, and we're selling the intangibles such as the domain name and the unique user base, as well as the merchant list," said Hisham Calo, business development manager for the company, which employed about 70 full-time workers.
About half of Redwood Shores, Calif.-based Buyersedge's employees were laid off in the last month, according to sources inside the company. Those who were not laid off have received employment offers from the new company.
The site, which launched last year, apparently entered a standing-room-only business where rivals such as Respond.com and Imandi were all vying for consumers' attention and dollars.
The impending buyout, expected to be finalized within the next 10 days, follows the departure of its founder and chief executive Gary Martino last March because of personal reasons. Brad Garlinghouse, a Buyersedge board member and partner of CMGI @Ventures, became the interim chief executive shortly following.
The company is one in a laundry list of other dot-coms to close shop or sell to buyers to recoup loses. FooFoo.com, Boo.com and Toysmart.com have all closed their virtual doors in the last two months.
Buyersedge touted more than 6,000 merchants in its network and it had content partnerships with companies such as Activebuyersguide.com, Deja.com and Productopia, another company funded by CMGI @Ventures.