LivingSocial
LivingSocial
Entrepreneur: Tim O'Shaughnessy, 29
Funding: $632 million from Steve Case, Grotech Ventures, U.S. Venture Partners, Revolution, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Amazon.com, and T. Rowe Price
Chief Executive Officer Tim O'Shaughnessy started what is now LivingSocial in 2007 along with colleagues from AOL co-founder Steve Case's Revolution Health. It began as a maker of applications for Facebook and got off the ground with a service it acquired called BuyYourFriendADrink.com, where O'Shaughnessy and his team worked with beverage companies and restaurants so people could buy friends coupons for free drinks. From there it morphed into the online coupon service that's now used by millions of people as it challenges market leader Groupon.
Wisest funding decision: Taking $5 million in startup funding in 2008 from Grotech Ventures and Case, money that gave the company a chance to prove it could establish a viable business, and further established Case as a mentor.
Funding: $632 million from Steve Case, Grotech Ventures, U.S. Venture Partners, Revolution, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Amazon.com, and T. Rowe Price
Chief Executive Officer Tim O'Shaughnessy started what is now LivingSocial in 2007 along with colleagues from AOL co-founder Steve Case's Revolution Health. It began as a maker of applications for Facebook and got off the ground with a service it acquired called BuyYourFriendADrink.com, where O'Shaughnessy and his team worked with beverage companies and restaurants so people could buy friends coupons for free drinks. From there it morphed into the online coupon service that's now used by millions of people as it challenges market leader Groupon.
Wisest funding decision: Taking $5 million in startup funding in 2008 from Grotech Ventures and Case, money that gave the company a chance to prove it could establish a viable business, and further established Case as a mentor.
