I think that our buddy is long gone from the stock. FASH's CEO always seemed committed to the thought that he can build a profitable business our of FASH. He founded the company in 1994, has other apparel interests and is the process of assembling a few more pieces (on the cheap):
atnewyork.com
Fashionmall.com Pays Cash for Lifestyle Sites
By Ryan Naraine
After successfully fending off takeover bids from three different suitors, New York-based Fashionmall.com(NASDAQ:FASH) has jumped into acquisition mode by snapping up three lifestyle Web sites, including failed cosmetics retailer BeautyJungle.com.
Financial terms of the transactions were not disclosed but a source close to the deals told atNewYork they were all cash deals that did not make a significant dent in Fashionmall's cash reserves of $35 million.
Fashionmall.com, which runs a Web-based network of shopping and content portals, said it had purchased domain names, trademarks, intellectual property assets, content and Web sites of three sites over the last three months.
In addition to the BeautyJungle.com assets, Fashionmall also purchased MXGOnline.com (also known as MoxieGirl) and petite apparel portal ItsyBits.com.
Fashionmall.com, which also snapped up Boo.com in a fire sale last year, said the purchase of the three sites would extend its reach within the fashion and beauty category of its portal.
"With these acquisitions we now have up to eight properties under management which gives us an extensive reach in fashion and beauty and creates a valuable offering for advertisers and tenants looking to reach a fashion focused audience on the web," Fashionmall CEO Ben Narasin said.
He said the company would evaluate which properties will be re-launched as freestanding domains and which could be integrated into the signature fashionmall.com site.
Last November, BeautyJungle pulled the plug on its cosmetics retail operations and laid off approximately 30 employees in New York, Indianapolis and Chicago.
The demise of BeautyJungle.com closely mirrored similar flameouts in the online beauty space with two other major players -- idealab!-backed Eve.com and Beauty.com -- exiting the business.
Like many other Internet companies that have been hammered by the shakeout in the equity markets, Fashionmall was itself the subject of acquisition talks with two firms -- GenesisIntermedia.com and Narax, Inc. -- making public bids to purchase the company.
Narasin, who holds a controlling stake in the Fashionmall, rejected both bids but indicated he would be willing to work on forming a strategic alliance with GenesisIntermedia.com (NASDAQ:GENI), a marketing firm based in Los Angeles.
The company has a market cap of $11.7 million. Shares of Fashionmall were unchanged at $1.62 in early trading. The 52-week high is $5.00 and the year-low is $1.25. |
