Seller also sold CashBack.com to Microsoft.
Yesterday Gift Card Lab announced that it had acquired GiftCard.com for over $4 million in cash and equity.
The purchase was not just a domain name; it came with a long running business that also included the 1-800-gift-card vanity number.
I confirmed with Gift Card Lab that it paid $4 million in cash and the equity was on top of that. But I also wanted to check in with the seller, Maynard Small.
He confirmed that the sale included a $4 million cash component plus the equity.
As I talked to Small this morning I began to have a sense of de-ja-vu. Then it hit me: I had talked to Small many years ago when he made another big sale.
Small sold Microsoft the CashBack.com domain name in 2008 when the company released its cash back search promotion.
Although Small could not tell me how much he sold CashBack.com to Microsoft for, he did say he sold CashBack.net to a different company for six figures.
According to his LinkedIn profile, Small got his degree from the University of Nebraska back in the 1950s. He has been at the helm of his company Creative Marketing Associates for nearly forty years after a fifteen year stint at another company.
So you might assume that the GiftCard.com sale is Small’s last hurrah before he goes off to buy a beach home. But you’d be mistaken. Small has many ideas for new business ventures, and he’s actively working on the next ones.
Don’t be surprised if you see another story about Small on Domain Name Wire in the future.
If he was a broker, I would go with him
Small is a nice guy, spent hours on the phone with him before the cashback.com sale. The people who usually make it are humble to listen, learn from others. Small fits the criteria very well.
Yes, and cahback.com resolves to Bing.com. Interesting…
@ Sem – Microsoft killed its “cashback search” program.
Did he say what he bought those names for and when?
How long did he hold them and did he have them parked or just a plain for sale page?
Interview the man in depth if you could, lots of questions 🙂
@ John – GiftCard.com was an established business. I believe he registered it in 1995.
I’m not sure about CashBack.com