Plum District

Plum District is headquartered in San Francisco and offers national deals in North America along with local deals in markets including Orange County, Los Angeles, New York City, San Diego, Denver, and San Francisco. In March 2011, Plum District was selected by Facebook as one of nine partners in its short-lived[1] foray into daily deals.[2] Plum District teamed with The Walt Disney Company to launch Disney Family Deals in July 2012.

Plum District
Type of site
Electronic Commerce
Founded2009
Key people
  • Susan Kim CEO
  • Jennifer Nuckles [VP of Marketing & Merchandising]
  • Raul Vazquez
URLPlumDistrict.com
CommercialYes
RegistrationNone
LaunchedMarch, 2010
Current statusActive

Founded by Megan Gardner, Susan Kim, who had been serving as interim CEO, permanently took control of the company in March 2013.[3] Raul Vazquez, ex CEO of Walmart.com, joined the Board of Directors in December, 2011.[4] Vazquez was named number 14 on Money Magazine's 40 under 40 list for 2010.[5]

From its peak coverage in 27 metro areas,[6] by August 2012 the company had undergone significant contraction, nearly 50%, and sustained several rounds of layoffs.[7]

In July 2020, Plum District was acquired by Coupon Lawn.[8]

Funding

In Series A funding, Plum District received $8.5M in funding from Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and General Catalyst Partners,[9] two top U.S venture firms. Previous financing, also Series A, of $2.1M came from a collection of angel investors.[10]

In December 2011, the company raised a combined $20 million from General Catalyst Partners, Kleiner Perkins, Comcast, and Duke University in Series C funding.[4]

Business model

Plum District introduces a distinct deal of the day in each of the local markets it serves. The deal is mailed or delivered electronically to local and national Plum District subscribers. Like all Deal Of The Day sites, Plum District's revenue is generated from affiliate marketing, advertising placements, and joint ventures with the merchants with whom they work.

Acquisitions

The company acquired merchant loyalty business Chatterfly and New York based daily deal business DoodleDeals, in December 2011.[4]

In 2013, Plum District acquired AngelPad-backed Spotivate, the first acquisition by then-new president Susan Kim.[11]

References
  1. Barr, Alistair. "Facebook ending Deals product after four-month test". Reuters. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  2. Womack, Brian. "Facebook Will Introduce New Service That Sells Discount Deals". Bloomberg. Retrieved 13 April 2011.
  3. "CEO And Founder Megan Gardner Out At Mom-Centric Deals Site Plum District, Ex-Googler Susan Kim Takes Over". Tech Crunch. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  4. Perez, Sarah. "Moms Love Daily Deals: Plum District Raises $20 Million, Acquires Chatterfly & DoodleDeals". Tech Crunch. Retrieved 8 December 2011.
  5. "40 under 40". CNN Money. Retrieved 8 December 2011.
  6. Gardner, Megan. "Investing in Mom Power". New York Times. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  7. "Layoffs At Plum District Point To Changes In Hyperlocal Deals Market". Tech Crunch. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
  8. "Plum District - Coupon Lawn". Retrieved 23 August 2020.
  9. Russell, Frank Michael. "Plum District: Kleiner Perkins leads $8.5M round for deal site for moms". MercuryNews. Retrieved 13 April 2011.
  10. Klein, Julie. "Plum District gets $2.1M to bring daily deals to busy moms". VentureBeat. Retrieved 13 April 2011.
  11. Crook, Jordan. "Plum District Has Acquired AngelPad-Backed Spotivate For An Undisclosed Amount". Tech Crunch. Retrieved 11 July 2016.
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