MarchFirst

marchFIRST, Inc. was a web development company. It was formed at the peak of the dot-com bubble by the merger of US Web and Whittman-Hart and was named for its formation date of March 1, 2000.

marchFIRST, Inc.
NASDAQ: MRCH
IndustryWeb development
FateBankruptcy
FoundedMarch 1, 2000 (2000-03-01)
DefunctMay 2001 (2001-05)
HeadquartersChicago
Key people
Bob Bernard, CEO

On April 13, 2001, approximately one year after it was formed, the company filed bankruptcy.

History

The company was formed on March 1, 2000 by the merger of US Web and Whittman-Hart and was named after its formation date of March 1, 2000. Bob Bernard, the CEO of Whittman-Hart was named CEO of the company.

On October 24, 2000, the company's stock price fell 58% in one day after the company missed earnings expectations.[1][2]

In December 2000, Francisco Partners acquired 32% of the company for a $150 million contribution.[3][4]

On February 13, 2001, the company missed earnings expectations again and its stock price fell another 35%.[5]

On March 13, 2001, several executives including CEO Robert Bernard, COO Thomas Metz, and EVP Joseph Bong resigned.[3]

On April 2, 2001, the company announced 1,700 layoffs.[6][7]

On April 13, 2001, the company filed bankruptcy.[8] On May 1, 2001, the company filed for a liquidation under Chapter 7, Title 11, United States Code.[9]

The company sold most of its assets to Divine for $120 million.[10][11] Former management, including Bernard, also acquired some assets of the company.[12] SBI acquired additional assets of the company in June 2001.[13] marchFIRST Norway was acquired by Itera ASA in July 2001.[14]

References
  1. "marchFIRST plunges". CNN. October 24, 2000.
  2. Bosavage, Jennifer (June 4, 2010). "10 Years Ago: IT Circa June 2000". CRN.
  3. Kaiser, Rob (March 13, 2001). "Marchfirst Founder Resigns In Shakeup". Chicago Tribune.
  4. Rosencrance, Linda (December 14, 2000). "Struggling MarchFirst to get $150 million from investment firm". Computerworld .
  5. Waters, Jennifer (February 13, 2001). "MarchFirst shares plunge another 35%". MarketWatch.
  6. "MarchFirst Announces 1,700 Layoffs". AdWeek. April 2, 2001.
  7. Foster, Ashlea (April 1, 2001). "Layoffs spell more trouble for MarchFirst". American City Business Journals.
  8. Rose, Barbara; Kaiser, Rob (April 13, 2001). "Marchfirst Files For Bankruptcy". Chicago Tribune.
  9. "MarchFirst to Liquidate After Asset Sales Failed". The New York Times. Reuters. May 1, 2001.
  10. "marchFIRST files Chap. 11". CNN. April 12, 2001.
  11. "Divine acquires MarchFirst offices". American City Business Journals. April 3, 2001.
  12. Petrecca, Laura (May 7, 2001). "MARCHFIRST'S QUICK WALK OFF THE I-PLANK". Advertising Age.
  13. "Bankruptcy court approves MarchFirst acquisition". American City Business Journals. June 27, 2001.
  14. "Itera buys marchFIRST". Digi.no. July 4, 2001.
    • Historical business data for MarchFirst Inc:
    • SEC filings


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