We’re continuing our series of profiles of local-commerce companies by featuring Koopedia. The purpose of these Q&A interviews is to give merchants, marketers and others in the industry a look at what some companies out there are doing. These profiles are also meant to offer different takes on the future of the local-commerce industry.
Koopedia is a site that offers merchants a chance to run as many deals as they want for a flat weekly, monthly or annual fee. Customers simply pay $1 to claim offers on Koopedia and pay the rest to the merchant. We talked with CB Smithwick, CEO and co-founder, to learn more about the new company. Read on to learn how the company got its start and chose its name, what Smithwick sees as the biggest issues facing the daily-deals industry, and its simple message to small businesses.
Please introduce yourself (personal hobbies are of interest, too).
CB Smithwick, CEO and co-founder of Koopedia. Well, I’m not your typical dot-com guy at all. I grew up in rural southern Georgia surrounded by cotton, peanuts and gnats. The latter of the surroundings was my ultimate motivation for migrating to Atlanta. For those who read this that have no idea what I am referring to, there’s a magical line in Georgia called the “Gnat Line” and Atlanta is on the side with no gnats. Most people where I’m from leave to chase a dream or make real money — I honestly just hated the dang gnats. Seriously, they have no purpose whatsoever. They’re just annoying and incredibly persistent at carrying out that mission. Clearly my decision was one of common sense and inherent genius.
In no particular order, I’ve been a grocery bagger, construction worker, salesperson, successful business owner, unsuccessful business owner, consultant, homeless person, homeowner, farmhand, sinner and a saint. Is there such a thing as too many commas? Anyway, I can’t cite a fancy college, impressive bloodline or prestigious affiliations; quite the opposite actually. I can say, however, I’m a very hardworking, driven and passionate individual surrounded by an incredible team with one common goal — make tomorrow better for those to come by, helping as many people today as possible.
How would you describe Koopedia in one sentence?
Koopedia would have been a magnificent tool for Henry Ford, Harvey Firestone and Thomas Edison to use — to name a very few.
Can you walk us through the history of the company, how it got its name and how its business has evolved since its start?
The company began in 1994 when I was first exposed to small business by way of feed-and-seed stores my dad called on as a representative of Farmers Favorite Fertilizer, or FFF as it was commonly known. I would ride along with him throughout Georgia during my summer break. My dad worked his way up from shoveling fertilizer at the plant in Moultrie to representing the company as a salesperson. I was simply curious about what he did when he left on Mondays. Daddy would always explain why people said or did what they did when we left the stores. Little did I know, I was staring an obsession with why people do the things they do.
Fast-forward a decade and I found myself integrated with corporate America and all that comes with it: the power, influence and greed. I sold to small businesses and was awarded one of the highest honors within my first 12 months. I did what I was told and believed what the leadership of the company said. However, I began to notice divergence between what was told and what was actually happening. Before I could put my finger on the contradiction, the company was subject to a takeover by a much larger corporation. You can fill in the blanks.
After a few ups and downs, I ended up consulting for several companies and specializing in sales development, Web design, Web development and overall business development. In August of 2012, Thomas Wright walked into my office and began to pitch his idea for a daily-deal site that had deals for a dollar. Thomas had a slide presentation and hunger in his eyes. I said to Thomas, “You’re about 8-10 percent on your way to an actual business, but the concept is novel at best.” He replied, “OK, I’ll find the other 90 percent then.” That was all I needed to know. Given my experience and exposure to small business and Internet marketing, I decided to schedule a second meeting to discuss the how and why behind entering the daily-deal market.
A complete overhaul and rewrite later, Koopedia was born, and this time it was personal. I’d finally figured out the divergence over the years following my departure with corporate America. The daily-deal phenomenon was the perfect entry point to right that wrong. Greed, rather than purpose, was the single motivating factor for corporate America and they were willing to do whatever it took to satisfy that hunger. It didn’t matter if it helped or hurt the ones involved along the way. Unfortunately, I was made a pawn in their game of chess and was too naive to realize it at the time. Koopedia gave me an opportunity to make it right.
Oh, and the name is simple. “Koo” means something unique and/or cool, and “pedia” is a collection. So Koopedia is a collection of things that are unique and cool — that, and the fact that the domain was available for a few bucks.
What sets Koopedia apart from other deals providers, such as Groupon and LivingSocial?
The main differentiating factor is we are not actually a daily-deal site by common definition. To clarify, daily-deal sites generate revenue by acting as a third-party middleman and charging a commission; Koopedia does none of that.
However, to address the commonality of having deals, Koopedia doesn’t charge a single penny in commission — ever. Koopedia is a simply an effective and affordable method of reaching local customers via giving first, i.e., offering a discount.
Instead of babbling on with fluffy bull and how we are better than Groupon or LivingSocial, I would like to say we know exactly why people buy things and what the needs of small businesses are. In our observation, every other participant in the world of online marketing and advertising seems to believe they need to tilt one side of the scale to benefit one and not the other. How they fluff or sell that tilt is typically their “mission.” A pig with lipstick is still a pig at the end of the day. We chose to be sheep.
Can you walk us through what it would look like for a merchant to get started with a Koopedia campaign?
It’s a short walk, indeed. A merchant simply registers, chooses a membership option and posts deals. The actual campaign, if you will, is the liberation from draconian agreements with every other option available to market and advertise their business, including daily-deal sites.
How many merchants have signed up with Koopedia? What has been the response so far? Does the company have any projections or goals for 2013?
We have had an overwhelmingly positive response from merchants. As a matter of fact, we have yet to be told “no.”
Regarding projections, I wish I had a crystal ball to foresee exactly what those would be. Perhaps I could go ahead and take on the debt of buying that new Ferrari. However, according to our data and traction thus far, we look to enjoy quite an uprising in both merchant and consumer involvement in 2013 and beyond. Now that I think about it, Ferraris lose their value very quickly and the interest would probably be really high. Not to mention, I need four-wheel drive entirely too much to commit to beginning my midlife crisis in my 30s. I reckon I’ll just keep my ol’ Jeep.
In a recent interview with TechCrunch, you proclaimed that you want to keep the mission and goal of Koopedia free of outside influence motivated by greed. Will the company ever change its course and accept funding from outside sources?
To be clear, I never said we are against outside funding. We are against outside funding motivated by greed. Therefore, outside funding with the right motivation is hoped for and welcomed, if necessary.
What do you think are the biggest issues facing the daily-deals industry today, and what do you think are the solutions?
Reputation, motivation and becoming obsolete are the biggest I can think of. The solutions can be found by reversing the issues. Maintain a clean reputation, act with positive selfless motivation and redefine what the industry means.
A fourth and final would be selling out to corporate America. The solution is obvious, yet so many fail to adhere to historical patterns.
What can we expect to see from Koopedia in 2013?
Hard work, integrity and loyalty. Oh, and world domination. Just joking about the last one, but it’s not out of the question for 2014.
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