Company:Massdrop

From HandWiki
Massdrop
TypePrivate
IndustryE-commerce
Founded2012 in San Francisco, California, United States
FoundersSteve El-Hage (CEO), Nelson Wu
Area served
Worldwide
Number of employees
100+

Massdrop is a community-driven commerce platform. The site features products, polls, articles, and other content related to enthusiast industries like audio, mechanical keyboards, ultralight backpacking, cooking, and tech. The company was founded in 2012 and is based in San Francisco, California.

History

Massdrop founders Steve El-Hage and Nelson Wu met in Toronto, Canada, where El-Hage was studying economics at the University of Toronto.[1] The two had grown up using online forums as a way to explore their hobbies, but believed these forums had many shortcomings, including disorganized meetups and unreliable group buys.[2] They thought that by combining their forum experience with their interest in bulk buying, they could create a site that would better support enthusiast communities.[3] The pair moved to Silicon Valley, where they started Massdrop in 2012.[1]

Business model

Massdrop conducts community-driven commerce in multiple ways: by making new products,[4] by carrying existing products from other manufacturers,[5][6] and by helping small designers scale their products to larger sales.[7] Members can request specific products and features by voting in Massdrop's poll system and posting in discussions.[8][9] The most requested products and features appear in limited-time sales events called "drops."[10][2]

Past Massdrop-branded products include the Massdrop x Sennheiser HD 6XX headphones,[11][12] the Massdrop x Fostex TH-X00 headphones,[5][13] the Massdrop x AKG K7XX headphones,[14][15] the Massdrop x NuForce EDC IEMs,[16][17] the Massdrop x Noble X IEMs,[18] the Massdrop x MEE Audio Pinnacle PX IEMs,[19] the Massdrop x Sennheiser PC37X gaming headset,[20] and others.

Funding

In September 2014, Massdrop raised $6.5 million in a Series A round led by Mayfield Fund with additional investment from previous backers Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, First Round Capital, and Cowboy Ventures.[1][21] In August 2015, the company secured $40 million in Series B funding led by August Capital with additional investment from Mayfield Fund, First Round Capital, and Cowboy Ventures.[22][23]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Takahashi, Dean (September 24, 2014). "Massdrop raises $6.5M to enable enthusiast communities to use their massive buying power". Venture Beat. https://venturebeat.com/2014/09/24/massdrop-raises-6-5m-to-enable-enthusiast-communities-to-use-their-massive-buying-power/. Retrieved August 23, 2017. 
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Green, Dennis (August 17, 2015). "This startup is reinventing the flash sale for discerning men — and it just raised $40 million". http://uk.businessinsider.com/community-driven-flash-sale-site-massdrop-raises-40-million-2015-8?r=US&IR=T. 
  3. ↑ Konrad, Alex (June 11, 2014). "Massdrop's Zany Plan To Rally Internet Mobs For Discounts Is Working--For Now". Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/alexkonrad/2014/06/11/massdrop-zany-plan-to-crowdsource-discounts/. Retrieved December 8, 2014. 
  4. ↑ Ha, Anthony (September 24, 2014). "Massdrop Raises $6.5M To Turn Group Buying Into A Broader Community Platform". Tech Crunch. https://techcrunch.com/2014/09/24/massdrop-series-a/. Retrieved December 8, 2014. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Robson, Wayde (March 7, 2017). "Massdrop & Fostex Purpleheart TH-X00 Headphones Review". http://www.audioholics.com/headphone-reviews/massdrop-fostex-purpleheart-th-x00-headphones. 
  6. ↑ Campbell-Dollaghan, Kelsey (October 15, 2014). "The 1,300-Person Quest To Build the Perfect Mechanical Keyboard". https://gizmodo.com/the-1-300-person-quest-to-build-the-perfect-mechanical-1646556083. 
  7. ↑ Colaner, Seth (May 16, 2017). "Steal This Keyboard: Input Club's K-Type Is On Massdrop". http://www.tomshardware.com/news/input-club-k-type-mechanical-keyboard-massdrop,34345.html. 
  8. ↑ Green, Dennis (May 29, 2015). "This new website lets you buy expensive, authentic menswear for cheap — but there's a catch". http://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-massdrop-2015-5. 
  9. ↑ Dennis Green (17 August 2015). "This startup is reinventing the flash sale for discerning men — and it just raised $40 million". Business Insider. http://uk.businessinsider.com/community-driven-flash-sale-site-massdrop-raises-40-million-2015-8?r=US&IR=T. Retrieved 20 December 2015. 
  10. ↑ Kai, Yi (April 15, 2017). "Just take my money, Massdrop". http://www.businesstimes.com.sg/life-culture/just-take-my-money-massdrop. 
  11. ↑ Heater, Brian (November 8, 2016). "The Sennheiser x Massdrop HD6XX headphones are probably sold out, but will relaunch". https://techcrunch.com/2016/11/08/sennheiser-2/. 
  12. ↑ Gartenberg, Chaim (June 26, 2017). "Massdrop is selling Sennheiser's HD 650 again for $250". https://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2017/6/26/15872918/massdrop-sennheisers-hd-650-6xx-250-good-deal-sale. 
  13. ↑ Savov, Vlad (December 21, 2015). "These headphones were designed by audiophiles, and they're glorious". https://www.theverge.com/2015/12/21/10632812/fostex-massdrop-th-x00-headphones-review. 
  14. ↑ Molina, Adam (February 26, 2015). "Massdrop partners with AKG for a pretty sweet deal". https://www.soundguys.com/massdrop-partners-akg-pretty-sweet-deal-4149/. 
  15. ↑ Thomas, Christian (May 3, 2017). "Deal: AKG K7XX headphones $450 off at Massdrop". https://www.soundguys.com/deal-akg-k7xx-headphones-450-off-at-massdrop-12424/. 
  16. ↑ Thomas, Christian (July 2017). "NuForce/Massdrop EDC In-ear monitor review". https://www.soundguys.com/nuforcemassdrop-edc-in-ear-monitor-review-13250/. 
  17. ↑ Whitwam, Ryan (June 8, 2017). "Massdrop x NuForce In-Ear Monitors Offer Surprisingly Good Performance For Just $60". https://www.forbes.com/sites/ryanwhitwam/2017/06/08/massdrop-x-nuforce-in-ear-monitors-offer-surprisingly-good-performance-for-just-60/#6480aa286642. 
  18. ↑ Guttenberg, Steve (May 8, 2017). "Massdrop cuts price of stellar audiophile headphones in half". https://www.cnet.com/news/massdrop-cuts-price-of-stellar-audiophile-headphones-in-half/. 
  19. ↑ Hernandez, Pete (July 8, 2017). "Massdrop x MEE Audio Pinnacle PX review: A concert in your ear". http://techaeris.com/2017/07/08/massdrop-x-mee-audio-pinnacle-px-iems-review-concert-sound/. 
  20. ↑ Andronico, Michael (January 27, 2017). "Massdrop x Sennheiser PC37X Review: An Elusive Gem". https://www.tomsguide.com/us/massdrop-x-sennheiser-pc37x,review-4152.html. 
  21. ↑ Ha, Anthony (September 24, 2014). "Massdrop Raises $6.5M To Turn Group Buying Into A Broader Community Platform". https://techcrunch.com/2014/09/24/massdrop-series-a/. 
  22. ↑ Mac, Ryan (August 13, 2015). "After Nabbing Former Amazon Executive, Massdrop Rakes In $40 Million". https://www.forbes.com/sites/ryanmac/2015/08/13/massdrop-40-million-group-buy-bongs-amazon-executive/#43bfc7868ffb. 
  23. ↑ Ha, Anthony (August 13, 2015). "Group Commerce Startup Massdrop Raises $40M". https://techcrunch.com/2015/08/13/massdrop-series-b/. 

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