CatchOfTheDay, Scoopon completes largest growth capital investment in Australian e-commerce sectortled Release
Announcement posted by The Catch Group 23 May 2011
The founders of CatchOfTheDay, Gabby and Hezi Leibovich, will retain a controlling stake in the group businesses, with Lee Fixel from Tiger Global and Jason Lenga from Seek joining the board.
The funds will fuel the e-commerce group’s continued leadership in the high growth daily deals sector, and support the group’s expansion into new locations with a focus on more localized deals, the introduction of specialized offerings and continued investment in technology – including mobile applications – to meet the future needs of consumers.
Lee Fixel, managing director of Tiger Global said, “What was immediately apparent when we started discussions with the Leibovich brothers was their deep understanding of the space and what was required to build a globally competitive e-commerce group – particularly the importance of building strong supplier and procurement networks and investment in technology to remain innovative and agile.”
James Packer shares this view, adding: “Unlike many other players in the market, the team’s proven experience in building profitable e-commerce businesses, means they have the skills, supplier networks and economies of scale to keep growing and leading the market. We are excited to align ourselves with the market leader in the online daily deals sector in Australia.”
CatchOfTheDay and Scoopon operate in the high growth daily deals sector, part of the broader global online retail market. Daily deals sites are based on offering one highly discounted deal (product and services) a day to customers. Gabby and Hezi Leibovich are pioneers in the Australian daily deal sector, launching CatchOfTheDay.com.au five years ago in 2006 and successfully expanding their business with the launch of group buying site Scoopon.com.au in 2010.
Gabby Leibovich says despite the growth in the daily deals sector, Australia’s online retailing industry is still in its infancy when compared to other markets, which is one reason why they considered investment from international partners.
“It is still early days in Australia when it comes to online retail and to support our next phase of growth we were open to overseas investors who could share a different perspective into the online retail market, as well as bring new skills, advice and contacts to further our growth and expansion.
“The investment consortium of Tiger Global, CPH, Andrew Bassat and Glenn Poswell possess a true passion for the internet. Through our relationships with them we are able to access a wealth of advice, experience, and extensive contacts – both local and international – to propel our business forward. We look forward to working with them,” said Leibovich.
KPMG Corporate Finance and Arnold Bloch Leibler acted as advisers to the owners of CatchOfTheDay and Scoopon.
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Notes to editors:
Media enquiries: Melissa Shawyer, The PR Group: +61 412 066 048 melissa@prgroup.com.au
About CatchOfTheDayCatchOfTheDay is Australia’s number one online retailer*, offering one highly discounted deal a day to customers. Founded by brothers Gabby and Hezi Leibovich in 2006, the business quickly expanded to include cellar door specials with wine.catchoftheday and Australia’s best deals on services and experiences with sister site Scoopon, which was recently named the number one# group buying site after just a year online. CatchOfTheDay and its related sites boast a membership base of more than 950,000 active and engaged shoppers. Each day the e-commerce group receives more than 150,000 visitors to its sites, with a product sold from its sites every four seconds. Headquartered in Melbourne, Australia, CatchOfTheDay employs more than 100 staff.
For more information please refer to company backgrounder provided or visit:
* Experian Hitwise 2010
# Telsyte March quarter 2011 group buying report
About Tiger Global (LLC)
Tiger Global Management, LLC, is a privately owned investment manager. The firm manages a group of hedge funds and growth capital funds. Tiger Global Management was founded in 2001 and is based in New York, with an additional office in Beijing, China.
About Consolidated Press Holdings
Consolidated Press Holdings Ltd (CPH) is an Australian-owned investment holding company headed by James Packer, engaging in a diverse range of investment activities, including media, beef cattle farming, tourist resorts and operation of hedge funds. CPH employs approximately 150 staff and is headquartered in Sydney.
About Gannet Capital
Gannet Capital is a Sydney based privately owned, boutique asset management company.
Gannet Capital’s investment philosophy is to provide compelling risk reward investment opportunities to sophisticated investors with a focus on capital preservation. Limited partners in Gannet Capital’s family of funds are comprised of institutions, family offices and high net-worth individuals from around the world.
Corporate photos can be downloaded at http://www.catchoftheday.com.au/pressphotos.php