One Day, One Job » e-commerce

Nasty Gal

Willy Franzen — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 17:30:24 +0000

One of the coolest things about the time that we live in is that the barrier to starting a business is essentially nonexistent. You can test your ideas on someone else’s platform, and if it works, then you build your own. Nasty Gal is a perfect example of this. The Los Angeles, CA based company began in 2006 when Sophia Amoruso “started an eBay store selling a highly curated selection of vintage pieces.” After finding success on eBay and validating the business, she started her own site where she could control the entire customer experience (and not pay eBay’s crazy fees). A lot of Nasty Gal’s stuff is pretty far out there–their home page has a huge picture of studded platforms that look like a medieval torture device–but it’s hard to argue with a brand that has nearly a quarter million Facebook likes.

Are You Nasty?

The key to Nasty Gal’s success is curation. Even though they’re in the business of selling and not editorial, they’re seen by many customers as a guide to what to buy. If it’s on Nasty Gal, it has to be cool–and that begs the question: What is a Nasty Gal? She’s “the coolest girl in the room‚ pulling off whatever wildly unique piece that suits the mood.” I’m certainly not a Nasty Gal, but maybe you are. And if you are, you’d be a great fit for a job at Nasty Gal. Right now they have a few opportunities that seem like they could be perfect for a new or recent grad. These include Accounting Clerk, Production Coordinator, Software Engineer, PR Coordinator, and Planning Analyst. Hope you’re nasty enough.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What do you think of Nasty Gal?

Wayfair

Willy Franzen — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 16:03:50 +0000

I’ve made a point of being more active in Cornell’s entrepreneurship community, so I like to think that I do a good job of keeping tabs on which other companies have been started by fellow alums. That’s why I was shocked to learn that the #2 online retailer of home furnishings and housewares was not only a company that I’d never heard of before, but a company founded by two Cornell grads. It’s called Wayfair–they’re based in Boston, MA and did $500 million in sales last year. The reason I hadn’t heard of them is that they were known as CSN Stores until last year (they were founded in 2002). CSN Stores was focused on building out 200+ product specific properties with generic domain names like Bedroomfurniture.com, Cookware.com, AirHockeyTables.com, and AllBarstools.com. Last year they decided to get serious about branding and started pulling all of their sites into the Wayfair brand.

Find Your Way

If you’d like to read a more in-depth version of the Wayfair story, check out this write up from GigaOm. It provides a lot of interesting details, but I actually think the Wayfair site is even better. Their About page is beautifully designed and packed with information, and the same can be said for the company’s Careers page. It’s also nice that they have a Campus Recruiting section that includes this video (you may need to click through to view it):

The campus recruiting page also includes four positions targeted towards 2012 grads: Business Analyst, Business Intelligence Analyst, Category Management Associate, and Software Engineer. Additionally, they have a ton of job postings for immediate hire:

Category Analyst / Entry Level Buyer (Sydney, Australia)
Jr. Designer/Web Production Artist
Customer Service Consultant (Sydney, Australia)
Bilingual Sales & Service Consultant (Galway, Ireland)
Customer Service Consultant (Ogden, UT)
Email Sales and Service Consultant (Ogden, UT)
Inbound Sales Consultant (Ogden, UT)
Sales Consultant (Ogden, UT)
Junior Web Operations Engineer
Software Engineer
Analyst, Email Marketing – Private Sale

There are a ton of great opportunities at Wayfair, which was named one of Glassdoor’s 2012 Best Places to Work, so browse through the postings and see if any of them are appropriate for you.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you purchased anything from Wayfair?

Internet Brands

Willy Franzen — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 18:07:03 +0000

In case you missed our e-mail from last week, Kembrel loved the response from our post about them so they’re offering a free VIP card (usually 20 bucks) to all ODOJ readers and $5 in store credit. Sign up here.

On Monday we took a look at Vertive, a company that builds internet properties to help people save money. Today we’re going to look at a company with a similar model of building and buying websites, but a much broader approach. Internet Brands is based in El Segundo, CA and started as CarsDirect.com in 1998. It was a successful brand for them, but in 2005 they realized that the platform they had built could be applied to other verticals. Now Internet Brands operates more than 100 websites that reach over a billion visitors every year. Amazingly, they’ve been able to generate almost all of this traffic organically (without buying advertising). This is all because of the platform that they’ve developed and the ability to share resources across brands. Internet Brands is a case study of how economies of scale can work on the web.

Get Branded

The best way to get a better feel for Internet Brands is to explore their… brands. There are a lot of them, but they typically fit into one of nine verticals: Automotive, Careers, Health, Home, Legal, Licensing, Money, Shopping, and Travel. Chances are that most of the brands will be new to you, but I found a few that I was familiar with. Unlike Vertive, Internet Brands doesn’t shed much light on how they operate. Even the Internet Brands Careers page is filled with mostly generic stuff like “Do you have energy, drive and ambition?” and “Do you have a strong sense of where you are going and how to get there?” Would any job seeker answer no to those rhetorical questions? At least Internet Brands makes up for it with a ton of job postings. Here are the ones that look well suited for an entry level job seeker:

That’s a lot of jobs. Hopefully a few of them will catch your interest.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What have you heard about Internet Brands?

Vertive

Willy Franzen — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 16:54:07 +0000

Having written profiles on more than 1,500 companies, I start to see the same stories over and over again. Some business models are just better than others, and those are the ones that seem to keep popping up. One of the most effective models these days is based on providing a free online resource to help save people money and using affiliate programs to monetize the traffic. Sites like Slickdeals, Fatwallet, Savings.com, ShopAtHome.com, CouponCabin, and WhaleShark Media have all taken that approach and succeeded. Vertive is another. They’re based in Austin, TX, and they were founded “to provide search engine marketing consulting and affiliate marketing services.” They eventually started building their own web properties, and that turned out to be way more profitable than consulting. Vertive’s biggest property is Offers.com, but other properties include DailyDeals.com, CouponCodes.com, and Subscription.com.

Get an Offer from Vertive

Because their properties are separate brands, the Vertive.com website is solely dedicated to providing information about the company. Luckily, the information is by no means generic. Vertive actually offers a pretty good look at how their business works. The section title How We Do It is especially good at describing Vertives’ approach to performance marketing. They also provide some good information on what it’s like to work at Vertive. If you like what you see, then you’ll want to check out Vertive’s Jobs page. Right now they have a good number of opportunities that are suitable for new or recent grads including:

Even if Vertive isn’t a good fit for you, it’s worth spending the time to learn about their business. The performance marketing model is… performing extremely well lately. It’s time that you understand how it works.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What have you heard about Vertive?

HDIS

Willy Franzen — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 16:40:52 +0000

I last wet my pants in 2nd grade. I knew I had to go, and I was waiting outside the bathroom with my legs squeezed together. I didn’t want to break the rules and use the bathroom down the hall, so I waited… and waited… and waited. Eventually I couldn’t hold it any longer, and I went. I told my teacher, and she did a great job of keeping it discrete so none of the kids in my class found out. But it was still terribly humiliating. Looking back I can laugh about it–and I often do (I love bathroom humor!), but I know there are plenty of people for whom things like this aren’t funny anymore. Incontinence is an extremely common problem, yet it’s not one that many people talk about openly. That’s why HDIS has been able to build such a successful business. The Olivette, MO based company’s full name is Home Delivery Incontinence Supplices, and they’ve “specialized
in providing quality care to those who experience loss of bladder control” since 1986. You’ve probably seen their commercials on tv–especially if you watch shows geared towards an older audience.

At Your Discretion

At first it seemed odd to me that a company like HDIS would exist when you can buy the products that they sell from a retail store or even Amazon.com, but then I realized just how specialized they are. They put a huge emphasis on personalized care, while also ensuring that they are always discreet. When you combine this level of service with exceptional branding and targeted advertising, they’ve become the nation’s largest direct supplier of incontinent supplies. It also helps that their pricing seems to be quite competitive (I checked it against Amazon on a few products, which I though was going to haunt my Recently Viewed Items, but Amazon seems to know better). HDIS may not be a trendy startup or a huge brand name, but they’ve built a business on serving a group of people who have a very specific need. If you’d like to be a part of what HDIS is doing, check out their Careers page. Right now they have a few jobs that you may want to consider including Marketing Specialist, Telesales Representative, Medicare Billing Supervisor, Customer Care Representative, and Outreach Representative.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What have you heard about HDIS?

Holstee

Willy Franzen — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 17:47:43 +0000

Usually we associate with brands based on our experiences with their products. After a while we know what brands we like and use brand names as a heuristic to make purchasing decisions easier. Occasionally when a brand has an exceptional story, the brand actually becomes the product. That seems to be the case with Holstee, a New York, NY based company that focuses on “lifestyle design with a conscience.” The only reason I had heard about them is that they’re often on Fab.com, yet there are a ton of people who have bought a printed version of the Holstee manifesto to put on their walls (see the manifesto here). The brand has literally become the product. Some may write off Holstee as an online store for “hipsters,” but the “People, Planet, Product” approach has a lot of meaning for a lot of people, and it’s enabled Holstee to grow their business.

Design Your Lifestyle

Holstee’s product line is pretty small, and it’s pretty random, but it’s all tied together by a story. They’ve curated a collection of products that help people live their ideal life. Whether you’re buying the Holstee original with a bizarre pocket on the side or Sugru Hacking Putty to repair old stuff instead of buy new stuff, you know that you’re making an ecologically conscious decision (while also sending a message about who you are). You’re also empowering “entrepreneurs in the developing world through,” as Holstee donates 10% of all sales to Kiva. If you’ve already ordered a copy of the Holstee manifesto to hang on your wall, then you’re probably dying to hear about Jobs at Holstee. They take a slightly different approach in that they don’t post job openings. They expect you to tell them about your dream job and why they should give it to you, so go do it!

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you purchased anything from Holstee?

UncommonGoods

Willy Franzen — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 17:11:21 +0000

Today is my seven year anniversary with Amy. Now that we’re getting married, we’ll be getting a new anniversary, but for now this is a date worthy of celebration. As a result, I was thinking about presents that I’ve bought her in the past, and I remembered one of the first gifts that I got her. It was an “in vitro orchid”– a tiny orchid plant in a test tube with some sort of nutrient filled gel. I can’t remember how I found it, but I know that I bought it from UncommonGoods, which is a great site for finding “unique gifts and creative design.” They’re based in Brooklyn, NY, and they “believe that creativity and the expression of individuality represent two great human treasures.” UncommonGoods was founded in 1999 and is a registered B Corporation, which means that they “have struck an insightful balance between the realities of business and each of the key components of sustainability – including human resources, environment, community, financial, and governance.”

How Uncommon Are You?

The best thing about UncommonGoods is their product selection. It’s certainly not the place to go if you’re looking for something specific, but if you only have a vague idea like “gift for a coworker” or “kitchen tools,” then UncommonGoods is the perfect place for finding something that you didn’t know existed. They put extra emphasis on finding products that are handmade or made by featured artists. They also like to drop Uncommon Knowledge on you while you’re shopping, so watch out for that. If you’re digging the UncommonGoods vibe, then you’ll have to give their Careers page a look. They have a ton of job openings, and quite a few seem suitable for a new or recent grad. These include:

Copywriter
Junior Web Developer
Buyer
Product Development Assistant

It looks like there are some pretty cool options, so take a look at the Careers page to see the full descriptions.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you bought anything from UncommonGoods?

Kembrel

Willy Franzen — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 12:57:32 +0000

Kembrel is members-only, but you can get in using this link. They’ll even give you a VIP Card for free (worth $20) and $5 in store credit to get you started.

There’s a battle going on between traditional retailers and e-commerce companies. The former offers the opportunity to get your hands on the merchandise, but the latter usually offers better prices, better selection, and more convenience. This leads to a lot of people using retailers to check stuff out and then buying online. I want to see companies start merging those two business models, and that’s exactly what Kembrel is doing. They’re a Philadelphia, PA based “online club” that allows “students to access their favorite fashion, food, and fun for a fraction of the retail price.” The online flash sale strategy is being combined with retail stores (they recently opened their first in Philly) to build the brand and offer members the opportunity to actually interact with products.

Join the Club

I find it really interesting that Kembrel is so intently focused on the college market. Fashion, food, and fun are a lot easier to sell to people who are post-college and have an income. Still, college kids are fashion conscious and need a place to buy clothes, and I think a hybridized online/retail model is the best way to sell to them. If you’d like to be a part of growing this model, then you need to check out Kembrel’s Jobs page. They kind of have a trying too hard to appeal to college kids way of copywriting, but maybe that will appeal to you college kids. Here’s what their Jobs page says:

Working for Kembrel is basically like working for a golden sunset that occasionally rains candy and happy hour beers in the form of a pastel-colored rainbow and there’s a wind in the air that sounds softly like hip hop mixes and there are gentle ponies with glittering braids that leap across the waving fields of tall grass delivering trendy clothes and vanilla mint ice cream to all the cheerful workers typing giddily at their desks.

Right now they’re hiring a Women’s Apparel Buyer, student photographers, and a bunch of interns. Take a look at the positions and see if any make sense for you.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Will you shop at Kembrel?

Oriental Trading

Willy Franzen — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 14:25:58 +0000

It’s probably a little late to be planning a New Year’s Eve party, but I guess for a lot of people all it takes is a trip to the liquor store to prepare. But if you really want to do New Year’s Eve right, you need party hats, noisemakers, those popper thingies, and all kinds of other novelties. One of the best places to get those is Oriental Trading, an Omaha, NE based “direct merchant of value–priced party supplies, arts and crafts, toys and novelties, and a leading provider of school supplies and affordable home décor and giftware.” I remember getting their catalogs as a kid and thinking how awesome it would be to have not one stupid plastic toy, but a 1000-count tub of them. Oriental Trading has been around since 1932, and they’ve been able to stay competitive by quickly adapting to the changing ways people buy stuff.

A Favorable Trade

Oriental Trading may not sell high-end products like a lot of other long-lived mail order companies, but they’ve still “been recognized as one of the Top 50 Internet Retailers and one of the Top 50 Catalog Companies.” What I think is cooler is that The Omaha Chamber of Commerce named Oriental Trading as “one of Omaha’s Fastest Growing Companies three consecutive years.” I’m not sure how recently that was, but any time you can grow an already large, 80-year old company at an above average rate is impressive. If you’d like to help keep that growth going and you find that flipping through the Oriental Trading catalog is a good way to spend a few hours, then take a look at Oriental Trading’s Careers page. Right now they have some cool job opportunities for new or recent grads including Assistant Brand Merchant, Cost Analyst, Inventory Specialist, Payroll Specialist, Studio Sample Coordinator, and Senior Sales Assistant. Check out the job postings, and please forgive the HR people at Oriental Trading for using Comic Sans in their job postings.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you ever looked through the Oriental Trading catalog?

AppSumo

Willy Franzen — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 17:05:26 +0000

Want to give AppSumo a try? Be sure to use this link to sign up.

I know that a lot of people are getting sick of daily deal sites, but I’m a huge Groupon fan (maybe because my fiancée works there); however, I must admit that the daily deal e-mail that I’m most excited for every day comes from AppSumo. They’re an Austin, TX based company that offers amazing bargains on software, online courses, and other tools that are extremely useful for entrepreneurs, web professionals, job seekers, and anyone who wants to use technology to a fuller extent. I’ve used AppSumo to buy things from Udemy (a PHP course), Tout (an e-mail management tool), StickerMule (awesome custom One Day One Job stickers), and a bunch of other cool companies. Each purchase has been valuable for building my business, and they’ve all come at unbelievably low prices.

Be a Sumo

AppSumo was founded by Noah Kagan just oner a year and a half ago. He’s a guy that I’ve had a chance to hang out with, and he’s super smart and extremely interesting. That’s why it’s no surprise that he’s built the company to more than half a million customers in that time. Unfortunately, you can’t get the AppSumo story for free on their website. Noah is a smart businessman, so he charges $79 for the behind the scenes story and charges $500 for an hour of one-on-one time (those are discounted prices). If I were you, I’d buy both of them and use them to try to land a job with AppSumo. They have a “For any reason anytime before you die” 100% money-back guarantee, so if you don’t get hired, you can totally get your money back. You can see all of AppSumo’s current and past openings on their Jobs page, so check that out. Right now they’re looking for a Python Developer and two Business Development Sumos, but they’ve had past jobs in Marketing, Design, Customer Support, Quality Assurance, Copywriting, and Taco Eating.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you ever bought something from AppSumo?

Blue Nile

Willy Franzen — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 18:51:24 +0000

If you’ve been reading for very long, you’ve probably seen me mention my girlfriend Amy. She’s awesome. She was the setter on Cornell’s volleyball team, she spent nearly 3 years as a consultant at McKinsey, and now she runs Competitive Intelligence at Groupon. I’m constantly impressed by her, and I’m extremely thankful for how supportive she has been as I’ve gone through a lot of ups and downs to build this business. Considering that she’s stuck with me long enough to see One Day One Job achieve meaningful profitability, I figured it was time to put some of those profits towards a ring. I was referred to an amazing custom jeweler who walked me through the entire process and helped me design something that she’d be happy wearing forever. On Wednesday afternoon I got the ring, and on Wednesday night I popped the question. Thankfully, she said yes! While I didn’t use Blue Nile for the ring, I thought it was a fitting company to take a look at today because I was constantly on their site doing research during the process. They’re based in Seattle, WA, and they’ve become “the largest online retailer of certified diamonds and fine jewelry.”

I Didn’t Go to Jared

Buying a ring has to be one of the most intimidating processes that a young guy can go through. It’s really tempting to do the whole thing online, and Blue Nile’s focus on customer service makes that a reasonable choice (though I’m glad I didn’t do it online). I think the best thing that they offer is a 30-day guaranteed return period, but it’s in tight competition with their user interface. It’s ridiculously easy to find what you’re looking for–and if you don’t know what you’re looking for, it’s ridiculously easy to educate yourself using Blue Nile’s resources. Even though I didn’t buy from them, I’m still a huge fan, which is why I think that you should take a look at Blue Nile’s Jobs page. They have a few opportunities that look well suited for a new grad including: Bilingual Customer Service Representative, Assistant Buyer, and Website Development Engineer. The jewelry business is fascinating, so working at Blue Nile would probably be pretty exciting.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Two engagement tips:

1. Use browser privacy when you’re looking for jewelry online. If you don’t, you will get bombarded by ads.

2. Don’t change your relationship status on Facebook until your fiancée has told everyone she needs to tell. Even though it says that it will wait for her confirmation, it will still tell everyone that you’re engaged (but not whom you’re engaged to until you’ve confirmed). I learned this one the hard way.

OpticsPlanet

Willy Franzen — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 16:25:36 +0000

When I was a kid, I had eyes like a hawk. At my best I had 20/12 vision. Then in high school things started getting blurry, and I eventually had to get contact lenses. Luckily, humans have spent a ton of time and energy in developing technology that helps us see better. Whether you want to see something really small, far away, or in the dark, there’s optical equipment that can help you out. The thing is that microscopes, binoculars, night vision goggles, and even glasses aren’t something that you buy casually–you want to buy from someone who knows his or her stuff. OpticsPlanet is a Northbrook, IL based company that employs a whole bunch of those people. They are “one of the world’s leading online retailers of a wide selection of sport optics, tactical and military gear, scientific products, hunting gear, professional grade products and eyewear.” I get excited when I get a new contact lens prescription, so I bet getting to play with some of OptcisPlanet’s offerings would make me giddy.

Seeing Is Believing

When you end up on OpticsPlanet.com, it looks like a pretty generic e-commerce site. I would have never guessed that they generated $82.6 million last year, but thats’ what the numbers from the Inc. 5000 say. They’ve also been growing at a 113% rate over the past three-years, so they must be gaining a significant share in the optics market. I found a video on their About page that gives a pretty good intro to the company, so check it out below:

If you like what you see in the video and you also like the fact that OpticsPlanet was named one of “The Chicago Tribune’s Top Workplaces,” then you have to take a look at their Careers page. Right now they have some great opportunities for new or recent grads including:

User Interface Designer
Communications Designer
Content Project Manager
Junior Web Developer / JavaScript
Accounts Payable Specialist
Call Center Quality Assurance
Risk Management – Order Review Agent
Search Engine Optimization Specialist
Pay Per Click Marketing Specialist
Online Marketing Specialist
Copywriter
Vendor Services Account Coordinator

There are all kinds of opportunities at OpticsPlanet, so take a really close look and see if you like what you see.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What would you get from OpticsPlanet?

Best Made Company

Willy Franzen — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 17:53:56 +0000

Last night as I was falling asleep, I kept thinking about chopping wood. It’s something that I really enjoy doing because it’s mentally relaxing, yet physically exhausting. Then I started thinking about these awesome axes that I saw on Gilt Groupe and how I wish I had bought one, but I realized that the fact that I live in downtown Chicago means that I’d be more likely to use the ax for home defense than for chopping wood. This morning I decided to look those axes up, and I ended up on the Best Made Company site. They’re a New York, NY based company that “is dedicated to equipping customers with quality tools and dependable information that they can use and pass down for generations.”

Tools to Empower & Inspire

The best way that I’ve come up with to describe Best Made Company is as a curator. They don’t appear to actually do the manufacturing, but they find amazing vendors and either buy from them or partner with them for a custom run of products. Their current collection includes steel cups, hunting knives, first aid kits, books, maps, and all kinds of other stuff that I want in addition to their unbelievably awesome collection of axes. If you’re loving Best Made Company’s stuff as much as I am, then you should take a look at their Jobs page. Its name is a bit deceptive in that it only includes internships (unpaid and in Workshop, Projects, and Community), but I think it’s worth reaching out to Best Made Company and inquiring about full-time positions. You may also want to read up on their Outposts, as they have a team of “Guides” who report back on topics like Urban Expeditions, River Rafting, Fly Fishing, Field Photography, Cycle Touring, Wandering, Food & Foraging, Urban Homesteading, Cartography, and Aviation.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you bought anything from Best Made Company?

Gorilla

Willy Franzen — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 18:09:04 +0000

Imagine that it’s 1994 and you’ve just started a CD-ROM production company. You’re doing really well because of all of the excitement about a storage medium that hold 600 times more data than the floppy disk. How much courage would it take to abandon what you were doing and start working on something new? Probably more than I have, but that’s exactly what Gorilla did. The Chicago, IL based company saw what was happening on the web and decided to jump in. Today Gorilla is a “web design, development and marketing firm” that focuses on e-commerce. They’re “striving to be the go-to ecommerce agency for mid-size businesses,” and they’re well on their way with clients including Bonobos, INC., Sub-Zero/Wolf, and lots of other big names.

A Smarter Species of E-Commerce

I’m most familiar with Gorilla’s work on Bonobos’ recently relaunched site. It’s fantastic, though it did have a bit of a hiccup due to yesterdays Cyber Monday sales. It offers an excellent user experience, and it definitely makes me want to buy more stuff. If you want to take a look at some of Gorilla’s other work, you should probably delve into their Case Studies. You’ll also want to look over Gorilla’s Services, as they offer a ton of solutions in Design, Development, and Strategy. If you’re impressed by their work and think that you could add value in some of the areas that they work in, then you should check out Gorilla’s Jobs page. Right now they have a few positions that you should check out including Business Analyst, Front-End Web Developer, and PHP Developer. If none of those positions seem suitable for you, you can also reach out to them at careers@gorillachicago.com to see if there are any other opportunities.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What have you heard about Gorilla?

CouponCabin

Willy Franzen — Fri, 25 Nov 2011 17:44:09 +0000

A successful job search is all about improving yourself. One of my favorite places for finding tools and courses to make me a better entrepreneur is AppSumo, and they’re offering amazing 50% off Black Friday deals on gift certificates to use for future AppSumo purchases.

As good as Thanksgiving is for coming up with interesting job search ideas, I prefer Black Friday because it’s centered around commerce and leads to more realistic ideas. Seriously, just open up the newspaper and look at all the ads–you’ll find seemingly endless possibilities. Some of the companies that we’ve featured in the past that are extra relevant today include Amazon, Ernst & Young (you know why they call it Black Friday, right?), Visa, Fatwallet, Slickdeals, Savings.com, LivingSocial, and Groupon. Today we’re going to stick with the discount theme and take a look at CouponCabin. They’re a Whiting, IN based company that searches “tens of thousands of consumer emails, online forums, blogs, and merchant sites each week and even the Sunday newspaper to create a true one-stop-shop for savings.” They were formerly based in Chicago, IL, but they had to move across state lines (they’re still close to Chicago) because of an idiotic tax law that the state of Illinois passed.

Stay at the CouponCabin

CouponCabin is more about everyday discounts than going big for Black Friday, but they did build a Coupon Detector that can help you “be a Black Friday Ninja.” CouponCabin’s key differentiator is their quality control. I’ve used a ton of coupon sites that have expired coupon codes. CouponCabin tests all of their offers at least three times a week to ensure that users aren’t frustrated by dead deals. Their average user saves $19, they’ve saved users $22,005,132 over the past 90 days, and they’ve had 231,597,756 deals clicked since they launched in 2003. It’s no wonder that CouponCabin has been growing at an exceptional rate; in fact, they just raised $54 million in funding last month. That’s why you shouldn’t be discouraged by the fact that their Jobs page doesn’t show any listings right now. I’ll bet that money spurs some hiring pretty soon, so take CouponCabin up on their suggestion that you send a general application. It’s a more worthwhile way to spend a little time on Black Friday than “saving money” by spending money.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Find any good Black Friday deals?

BeachMint

Willy Franzen — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 16:37:43 +0000

So far our survey says that you find the job search frustrating. Tell us more so that we can help.

Back in June we told you about Birchbox, a company that offers a subscription to customized beauty product samples for $10 a month. It’s an interesting model, and it seems to be working out extremely well for them. BeachMint is a “social commerce” startup with a similar subscription model, but a very different approach. They’re a Santa Monica, CA based company with four brands: JewelMint.com, BeautyMint.com, StyleMint.com, and ShoeMint.com. I think you can guess what each offers a subscription to. When you sign up they give you a quiz to get a sense of what you like and what you don’t like, and then they start making new recommendations for you every month. It’s a little weird in that it’s structured like a subscription, but you don’t have to buy every month (but it sounds like it’s more of a monthly opt-out than opt-in). I kind of wish they stayed true to their name and would send me to a different beach every month.

Making a Mint

BeachMint is still a very young company, but they’ve raised a ton of money (nearly $40 million) and had some great early successes (apparently BeautyMint got 500,000 visitors in its first day). A big part of BeachMint’s strategy and a likely reason for their rapid growth is that they’ve aligned with some big name celebrities like Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, Jessica Simpson, Rachel Bilson, and Kate Bosworth. I’m sure they had to spend a lot of their funding on getting those names to sign, but it seems to be paying off with huge growth now. I’ll admit that I find BeachMint’s model a little confusing, but that doesn’t seem to be stopping people from signing up.

If you’re intrigued by what BeachMint is doing, then you should take a look at their Jobs page. There are a ton of jobs posted though most of them are either tech (Web/Software/Mobile Development) or Mint Brand Ambassador Manager / Independent Sales and Promotions Coordinator positions. The latter are available all across the country, and seem to be heavily commission based. The job best suited for our readership is probably the Merchandising / Design Assistant, which unfortunately is only part-time right now. Additionally, there’s the option to apply for future opportunities, and I also found a Customer Care Associate position and an Executive Assistant/Office Manager position on Startuply. I also found a Content Department Coordinator posting from a couple of months ago. It seems that BeachMint might be a bit disjointed in posting jobs, so don’t be afraid to apply for future opportunities.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you tried any of BeachMint’s offerings?

Refinery29

Willy Franzen — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 17:38:05 +0000

Keeping up with fashion isn’t a priority for me, but I still like to dress well. That’s why I trust Bonobos and Gilt Groupe to do the curation for me, and then I just buy what I like from them (it also helps that I’ve accrued a lot of credits from both of them). I know that a lot of people are far more active in keeping up with fashion, which is probably why Refinery29 is growing so quickly. The New York, NY based company is aiming to be “the cornerstone of fashion, beauty, and shopping for a new generation” as they offer “the only 360-degree source for shopping, exclusive deals, trends, beauty news, local hot-spots, and at-home sneak-peeks of fashion’s finest.” That’s ridiculously ambitious, but the results so far indicate that they’re pretty much killing it.

Show Your Refinement

I learned about Refinery29 from a blog post by my friend Charlie O’Donnell. The post touches on something really cool that Refinery29 is doing that I think more companies should do. They started out by focusing on editorial and grabbing attention to sell to advertisers. That’s what most companies in this space do, and it works, but why not take the extra step? Refinery29 has built it’s own e-commerce product called Reserve, and it’s essentially built on the daily deal model. It’s smart because it allows Refinery29 to capture even more value from their users than they do by selling advertising. I think we’ll see more and more companies do this–build media products as channels to promote their own products (I guess it’s nothing new considering the same idea is where Soap Operas got their start). I highly recommend that you dig into Refinery29′s content and get a better feel for who they are. If you like what you see, then you should probably check out their Careers page. They have a bunch of cool opportunities that might appeal to new or recent grads including:

Account Manager
Miami Editor (Miami, FL)
Los Angeles Editor (Los Angeles, CA)
Marketing Data Analyst
UX + Interaction Designer

There are a bunch of other positions, but they generally have more significant experience requirements. Hopefully something at Refinery29 will catch your eye and be a great fit.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What have you heard about Refinery29?

Pawngo

Willy Franzen — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 16:20:15 +0000

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I’ve never stepped foot in a pawn shop, but I am hopelessly addicted to watching both Pawn Stars and Hardcore Pawn. The two shows offer diametrically opposed views of the pawn industry. The former is all about antiques and interesting merchandise, while the latter is more focused on the people who pawn everyday items. In case you didn’t know, pawn is one of the simplest forms of credit. You give a pawn broker an item to hold as collateral, and he or she gives you a loan based on the value of the item. To get the item back you have to pay back the principal plus interest within a certain amount of time, otherwise the pawn broker can keep the item and sell it. Pawn makes credit available to anyone who owns something of value, and that’s generally a good thing. The pawn model has been around for thousands of years, so it’s about time for someone to take it online. That’s what Denver, CO and Chicago, IL based Pawngo is doing, and they’re taking it one step further. Pawngo is solely focused on the high end of pawn, so they only do loans from $250 to $100,000 (though you might be able to convince them to go higher if you have a really awesome item).

Be a Pawn for Pawngo

Pawngo’s Denver based operations facility looks nothing like your typical pawn shop. It’s truly a state of the art facility, that you can check out in the video below while also learning about Founder Todd Hills’ story (e-mail readers may need to click through).

If you’re still a little clear on how Pawngo works, you can read up on their online pawning process. I’m extremely impressed with what Pawngo is doing, and it looks like they’re growing well–they’ve already “loaned more than $2.1 million in 46 states.” I’m sure they’ll be loaning a lot more as they take in items like diamonds, gold, Apple products, DSLR cameras, and more. Pawngo makes their money from the interest on loans, but they also are working on opening an online pawn shop where you can buy high end items like Rolex watches. If you’re as fascinated by this business model as I am, then you should take a look at Pawngo’s Jobs page. Right now the two entry level jobs they have are Account Executive – Inside Sales (Chicago, IL) and ECommerce Manager (Denver, CO), but they also are looking for a an Appraiser (Denver, CO) and a Digital Marketing Strategist (Chicago, IL). Get a job with Pawngo before you have to pawn all your stuff to pay rent.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Would you use Pawngo?

Fab.com

Willy Franzen — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 16:42:03 +0000

Want to check out Fab.com and get daily design deals up to 70% off? Get your free invite here, and hurry. If you sign up before 11:45 AM EDT on 10/18/2011, you’ll get $10 in your account as soon as you sign up.

If my parents had to pinpoint the time when they hated me the most, it was probably one of the times they took my sister and me furniture shopping. It was always an unmitigated disaster. When I’m in a furniture store, it’s like I’m wearing a Horcrux (Harry Potter reference for those who have no idea what I’m talking about) around my neck. My irritability and immaturity increase at an exponential rate over time. My girlfriend, having had heard the stories, came up with a smart solution when we were buying stuff for our new place. Instead of dragging me along from store to store, she did some pre-shopping and then only showed me the stuff she absolutely loved. It worked perfectly, as I was in and out of the stores before I even had the chance to start acting like a hungry, tired three-year old. Now we’ve come up with an even better solution–she just sends me links to Fab.com. It’s a New York, NY based site and company that offers “daily design for everyone.” They’re relatively new on the scene, but they’ve been getting a ton of positive attention by offering amazing deals of up to 70% on all kinds of cool stuff for your home.

Are You Fab?

Much like Gilt Groupe and ideeli, Fab.com requires you to be invited to get access to their daily deals. Luckily, I’ve got the hookup and you can get an invite here (and if you sign up before 11:45 AM Eastern on 10/18/2011, you get $10 in your account for free). If you really want to get a feel for the site, you should sign up, but the other option is to read the Fab.com Buzz to get some (presumably favorable) third-party opinions. Beyond paying insanely close attention to design in both the products they sell and their user experience, Fab.com also has designed their customer service function to be exceptional. If you like what you’re hearing about Fab.com, then you’ll want to check out their job postings. They don’t have their own Jobs page, so they link straight to their postings on LinkedIn. There are a few postings, but the only one that is presumably entry level is Copywriter (their CEO actually posts the positions on LinkedIn). I did a little digging and found some more postings on our job search engine including positions like Customer Support Representative and Supplier Relations Coordinator. And if none of those positions look like a good fit, you can also check out Fab.com’s Team page to see what other types of careers are possible with Fab.com.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you signed up for Fab.com? Here’s an invite.

SCOTTEVEST

Willy Franzen — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 17:41:28 +0000

It’s moving day for me. I’m staying in the same neighborhood, but I still had to pack up my entire apartment and load it into a moving truck. It was kind of a pain, but hiring good movers is one of the best investments you can make. If only I had a travel vest from SCOTTEVEST–I could have stuffed everything in there, walked down the street, and done it all myself. That’s a bit of an exaggeration, but you really can fit a ton of stuff in SCOTTEVEST products. The company is based in Ketchum, ID and was started by Scott Jordan to create gadget-holding alternatives for man-purses–or even worse, fanny packs. It all started with vests, but now SCOTTEVEST offers a wide line of clothing that makes traveling with lots of stuff easy.

For the Trip of Your Life!

To get a sense for how SCOTTEVEST’s products allow you to store so much stuff, you have to head over to their website and take a look at their products. Most of the pockets are internal, so you don’t have to worry about looking like your whole wardrobe is made of recycled cargo pants (and I hear that SCOTTEVEST stuff is also wrinkle-resistant). The combo of functionality and fashion seems to be working well for SCOTTEVEST, as they made the Inc. 5000 with 205% three-year growth to $6 million in annual revenue. They’re still a small company employee-wise, but their Jobs page does indicate that they plan to continue growing. The only potentially entry level position they have posted right now is Graphic Designer/Developer, but they also have positions in PR, Production Management, and Garment Design (along with future openings in Marketing, Sourcing, Design, and Manufacturing). They seem open to hearing from anyone interested in working for them (and living in Ketchum, ID), so reach out to them at jobs@scottevest.com.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Do you own anything from SCOTTEVEST?

ShopAtHome.com

Willy Franzen — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 15:35:05 +0000

It’s not often that you see 25-year old companies on the Inc. 5000, but that’s exactly what ShopAtHome.com is. They got their start as a husband and wife team, and they’ve growing consistently since 1986. It seems that the growth has accelerated over the past few years, as ShopAtHome.com, which is based in Greenwood Village, CO, has a 442% three-year growth rate and generated $35.4 million in revenue last year. Now, ShopAtHome.com isn’t really what it sounds like. It’s not an online version of QVC. It’s a coupons site; in fact, it’s “one of the largest websites offering free online coupons, grocery coupons, cash back rewards, free samples, restaurant coupons and contests.” Their site had 37 million visits last year, which is a staggering number. What’s even more staggering is that they appear to have generated about $1 in revenue for every visitor.

Shop at Home, Work at Shop at Home

Although ShopAtHome.com does offer some forms of daily deals, they’ve really stuck to the traditional coupon model. It’s proven, and it obviously generates a ton of money. Essentially, ShopAtHome.com has built the ultimate audience (median age 35 with a household income more than $75K per year) for distribution of coupons, contests, and other types of deals. The killer feature is ShopAtHome.com’s Cash Back program, which rewards people with cash for shopping through the site. So far they’ve delivered $50 million back to consumers, so it’s been pretty effective. If you’re interested in what ShopAtHome.com is doing to save people money, then give their Jobs page a look. Right now they’re hiring an Online Marketing Data Analyst, and the position looks like a great fit for a new or recent grad. You may also want to check out their internships in Sales Support, Site Marketing, and Paid Search Marketing.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you used ShopAtHome.com?

One Click Ventures

Willy Franzen — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 16:38:00 +0000

The thing that I love most about the Inc. 5000 is the diversity of the companies. While there are definitely some strong themes throughout the list, there are companies doing all kinds of things in all kinds of places–and succeeding. One of the biggest themes on the list is that online marketing is offering massive opportunity to new companies. One Click Ventures is a Greenwood, IN based company that is big on Internet marketing. Unlike many of the other companies on the list, they do the marketing for themselves, not for clients. One Click Ventures runs a number of e-commerce properties including ABC Neckties, Affordable Scarves, Handbag Heaven, Inexpensive Watches, Reading Glasses Shopper, TravelProducts.com, Socks4Life, and Sunglass Warehouse. Each of these sites is in a very competitive niche, so it should be no surprise that One Click Ventures claims to have a distinct competitive advantage with their “marketing engine” that “consists of a diverse team of subject matter experts, including SEO, PPC, email marketing, social media, affiliate marketing, conversion optimization and content development.”

One Click to a New Job

When I came across One Click Ventures, I knew their name sounded familiar. It was because one of my friends from Cornell works there now, and he just sent me an e-mail about some of their job openings. That coupled with One Click Ventures’ fast growth really got me interested. The Inc. 5000 has them at #542 with 619% three-year growth to $3.4 million in annual revenue. A big driver of that growth has been acquisitions. One Click Ventures finds online properties that they think can benefit significantly from their online marketing capabilities. In other words they’re able to significantly increase the value of a site just by acquiring it and getting it up and running in their system. It sounds fascinating, and I’ve heard great things from my friend. If you’re interested in what One Click Ventures is doing, head over to their Careers page and take a look at their open positions. Right now they’re looking for a Marketing and SEO Specialist, a Marketing Analyst, a Graphic Designer, and a Junior PHP Developer. If you’re interested, feel free to apply on your own or e-mail me at willy@onedayonejob.com and I’ll make an intro for you to my friend.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What have you heard about One Click Ventures?

Savings.com

Willy Franzen — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 16:30:26 +0000

I can’t tell you how much money I’ve saved by being a savvy shopper. Doing something as simple as Googling for coupon codes or looking up discount programs has saved me money time after time. I’m by no means fanatical about this stuff (and I try to avoid buying stuff just because it’s on sale), but there are a ton of people who get really excited about finding deals. Many of them flock to online communities for deal sharing like Fatwallet, Slickdeals, and Savings.com. Whether you’re looking for a specific deal or just want to see what bargains are available right now, Los Angeles, CA based Savings.com offers that kind of information. You may wonder how a site that is focused on serving people who self-identify as being cheap makes money, but there’s no question that doesn’t seem to be a problem for Savings.com considering that they made the Inc. 5000 with 2,077% three-year growth to $19.9 million in revenue.

Saving You from Unemployment

Right now Savings.com is promoting 10% off at Urban Outfitters, $10 off a $75 order at Macy’s, and 20% off at New Balance. These deals are often discovered and promoted by the Savings.com community, though Savings.com also has staff to curate the deals that they feature. Because Savings.com has an active community of people who like to buy stuff, they’re able to make money by collecting referral fees from the sales they drive. Surprisingly I don’t see any actual advertisements on Savings.com, but it does appear that they’ve developed strong partnerships with some companies through their Stores program. If you love being a smart shopper, then you’ll want to take a look at the Savings.com Jobs page. There aren’t a ton of opportunities posted right now, but they are looking for a PPC Specialist in Santa Monica, CA and a UI Engineer and iPhone Application Engineer in Santa Barbara, CA.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you used Savings.com?

MyBuys

Willy Franzen — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 16:15:26 +0000

Baseball is considered a tough sport because even the greatest players fail about 60% of the time (taking a walk is never a failure!). I think that means if e-commerce were a sport, nobody would play it. Failing 97% of the time on average doesn’t sound like much fun, does it? (I guess that’s why a lot of people hate the job search.) If most e-commerce companies could get to even a 96% failure rate, they’d be thrilled. MyBuys is a company that aims to help online businesses sell to the 97% of people who don’t buy (they call them “Group97″). They’re headquartered in Redwood City, CA, and they also have a large presence in Ann Arbor, MI. MyBuys’ focus is on personalization. They believe that by learning more about customers every time that they don’t buy something, you can craft a personalized message or offer that is more likely to convince them to become buyers. What’s really cool is that MyBuys has developed technology to automate this.

Get out of Group97 for Job Seekers

The difference between a 96% and 97% failure rate doesn’t seem all that big, but it would actually represent a 33% increase in sales. Can MyBuys deliver those kind of results? I’m sure it depends on the client, but here’s the MyBuys pitch:

MyBuys offers a better way to engage with Group97, consistently and over the entire customer lifecycle. We get to know shoppers; match their interests to the products in your catalog; learn more about them every time they interact with your business; and present them with the most compelling offers coordinated across all touch points.

I know we’ve talked about retargeting recently, MyBuys offers a different approach for convincing non-buyers the error of their ways. If you want to see what this looks like in action, you can read up on some of MyBuys’ Case Studies along with their Solutions Overview. If you’re intrigued by what MyBuys is doing, then I recommend that you take a look at their Careers page. They have a number of opportunities that seem suitable for new or recent grads including Business Development Associate (Ann Arbor, MI), Client Success Associate (Ann Arbor, MI), Client Success Analyst (Ann Arbor, MI), Media Analyst (Ann Arbor, MI), Financial Analyst (Ann Arbor, MI), and Software Engineer Associate – Engineering Development Program (Ann Arbor, MI). Oddly enough, all of the positions in Redwood City, CA require more experience.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Are you part of Group97?

PowerReviews

Willy Franzen — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 16:14:28 +0000

Yesterday we looked at a company that helps online publishers make more money from their content. Today we’re going to look at a company that helps businesses capture user-generated content and use it to drive sales of their products. It may not seem obvious, but quality content is the key to driving online product sales. Not only do you need to convince people to buy your product, but you need to show search engines that your page is the place to go for information on a given product. That’s why PowerReviews exists. They’re a San Francisco, CA based company that has “built innovative social solutions at every stage of the social commerce journey to help you connect with your customers, learn from them, and sell more.” In other words, they provide software that powers customer review sections on e-commerce websites.

You Got the Power!

There are customer reviews all over the web. Some are great, and some are pretty worthless. A lot of that has to do with how they’re collected and how they’re presented. PowerReviews must do a pretty good job considering that their clients include Staples, REI, Toys ‘R Us, Orbitz, MLB, NBA, NFL, UGG, Tumi, Filson, and tons of other huge names. When you hear some of PowerReviews’ client testimonials, you realize that “social commerce” isn’t just some made up term. PowerReviews also has a site called Buzzillions, where they aggregate the reviews of all of their clients and allow you to search for product reviews of more than 15 million products. If you like the idea of a career in social commerce, take a look at PowerReviews’ Jobs page. Right now they have a bunch of interesting opportunities for new or recent grads including Technical Support Engineer, UX/ UI Engineer, Jobvite Guru, Office Manager, and Market Development Representative. There are a bunch of options here, so head over to the PowerReviews Jobs page to check them out.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Do you ever write online product reviews?

TrialPay

Willy Franzen — Fri, 27 May 2011 16:30:53 +0000

Marketing used to be simple. You buy a few ads, maybe offer a coupon or two, and people would buy your product (ok, it wasn’t that simple, but it was close). The company that provided the audience–the tv station, newspaper, magazine, or billboard owner–earned most of the marketing spend. That model is changing, and consumers are getting an increasing share of the pie. Groupon really revolutionized the model by convincing tons of business owners to spend their advertising dollars on subsidizing a customer’s (hopefully first) purchase. TrialPay is a Mountain View, CA based company that is using a similar philosophy, but with a very different implementation (Groupon is actually one of their customers). As they put it, they offer “the leading transactional advertising platform that serves thousands of name-brand companies.” They’re kind of like the impulse buy aisle at the supermarket. They already know that you’re going to make one transaction, so they offer you another while your credit card is already out.

Try TrialPay Out

TrialPay works with four core constituents: Game Developers, Software Publishers, Online Services, and Consumer Brands. It’s a little hard to understand exactly how their programs work until you see them in action. For instance, DealSpot makes offers to online gamers where they get rewarded with extra in-game currency when they make a purchase. And Transactional Ads are a way for consumers to get free stuff by signing up for another offer. I really encourage you to dig in and look at all of TrialPay’s offerings. You’ll see that their philosophy is all about making the right offer at the right time. Through the power of the Internet, they’re able to target advertising to you when you’re most likely to respond to it. It’s really cool, and a little bit scary. If you’re excited about what TrialPay is doing, check out their Jobs page. They have a bunch of opportunities posted, and a few seem like good fits for new or recent grads including: Business Development Associate, Scalability Engineer, Software Engineer, Marketing Coordinator, User Operations Analyst, and User Operations Specialist. They also allow you to apply for an unlisted position, so you have no excuse not to reach out to them.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you tried any TrialPay promotions?

Warby Parker

Willy Franzen — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 16:16:56 +0000

Have an interview you’re worried about? Want the inside scoop on an industry or a company? Thinking of grad school? Get the advice you need from Evisors. Hundreds of former employees and interviewers with experience at 500+ companies and top schools to help you land your dream job! You can even get free advice sessions here.

When I was growing up, getting glasses was a death sentence–a one way ticket to nerd-dom. Every kid dreaded the day that the school nurse conducted eye tests. Luckily, my eyes didn’t go bad until my Junior year of high school, so I pretty much went straight to contact lenses. Now it seems that people want eyeglasses, even if they have perfect eyesight. Instead of trying to downplay the fact that they’re wearing glasses, people are buying stylish frames that make a statement. The problem is that glasses are expensive and kind of a pain in the butt to buy. Warby Parker is a New York, NY based company that is trying to change that. As they put it, “by circumventing traditional channels and engaging with our customers directly through our website, Warby Parker is able to provide higher-quality, better looking prescription eyewear for under $100.”

It’s the Way You Frame Things

What’s really cool about Warby Parker is that they’ve taken a page of out the TOMS Shoes playbook. For every pair of glasses that Warby Parker sells, they deliver another pair for someone in need. (I think that this is actually a subversive ploy to spread hipsterdom.) It’s really a simple business. Make great glasses, and keep them cheap by selling them directly online. If you’re dying for more info, you can read up on How Warby Parker Does It along with info on their Design, Materials and Assembly. The only kink in the model is that most people want to try a few pairs of glasses on before they buy them. Warby Parker has this figured out with their Home Try-On Program–you get 5 pairs in the mail and you send back the ones you don’t like (with free shipping both ways). If you like what you see through Warby Parker’s lenses, then you’ll want to consider a job with them. They don’t have a Careers page, but they have a few positions posted on Startuply including Retail Associate and Operations Associate (they also reached out to us to tell us about their exciting growth and plans to hire new grads). Both look like great opportunities for new or recent grads, so give them a good look.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Do you wear glasses?

Gemvara

Willy Franzen — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 16:08:47 +0000

I haven’t purchased a lot of jewelry, but when I have (never for myself), I’ve found the process to be extremely intimidating. Jewelry stores are scary places–at least for men who are buying for someone special. There are thousands of options, all of them are expensive, and the staff can be snooty. I remember walking into one store and waiting 15 minutes for someone to acknowledge my presence. It was the one time that I actually knew what I wanted to buy, so I walked out and bought the same thing elsewhere. The experience made me never want to step foot in a jewelry store again. Maybe Gemvara is the answer. They’re a Lexington, MA based company that sells jewelry through the web, but there’s a really interesting twist.

A Gem of a Job

The most interesting thing about Gemvara is that they don’t carry any inventory (at least in terms of finished products). Everything is made to order “by hand, one at a time, in the USA.” The pieces displayed on their website are just suggestions. You can order one if you want it, but you can also customize your piece to fit your exact specifications. Even better, all of Gemvara’s jewelry is made with “high-quality conflict-free natural gems” and “recycled or responsibly mined precious metals.” They’re trying to completely change the jewelry buying process, and I like where they’re taking it. Gemvara is extremely customer focused, and it shows with their satisfaction guarantee, return policy, and warrantee. If you’re intrigued by Gemvara’s business model, then you need to take a look at their Careers page. They have a number of open positions that seem suitable for new or recent grads including Graphic Designer, Junior User Experience Designer, Quality Assurance Assistant (New York, NY), and Website Copywriter. Gemvara just got another round of funding, so don’t be surprised to see more jobs posted soon.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

What kind of jewelry buying experiences have you had?

Cabela’s

Willy Franzen — Tue, 29 Mar 2011 16:57:28 +0000

Being a fly fisherman, I sometimes get frustrated with living in Chicago. Not only are there few opportunities to go fishing without a decent drive, but the winters are way too long (it’s supposed to be spring now, and it’s not). To get through the winter I’ll often visit fishing stores, look at websites, and read through catalogs. It’s not much, but it’s all I have. And Cabela’s provides all three options. The company is based in Sidney, NE, and they’re the “largest mail-order, retail and Internet outdoor outfitter in the world.” It all started in 1961 with a tiny classified ad that Dick Cabela placed in a newspaper because he wanted to sell some fishing flies that he purchased while visiting Chicago for a furniture show (since Nebraska is even less of a fly fishing destination than Chicago is). Despite a lackluster response to the original ad, Dick Cabela kept trying. The company grew organically, and now Cabela’s is dominating three major retail channels. The truly amazing part of the story is that Cabela’s has been able to maintain their commitment to customer service throughout all of the growth. I’m not a big customer (I try to support local shops), but I have quite a few friends who are extremely loyal Cabela’s customers because of the quality of products and service.

Outfitting Your Job Search

If you love the outdoors, you probably already know all about Cabela’s. Their stores are massive shrines to everything that is great about being an outdoorsman. They have fish tanks, taxidermy, indoor mountains, archery ranges, and, obviously, lots and lots of products that you can buy. According to Wikipedia, their store in Kansas City had 4 million customer visits in a single year, while the store in Hamburg, PA covers a quarter million square feet. Obviously, the ultimate Cabela’s experience requires visiting one of their stores, but their catalogs and website are pretty good proxies if you’re stuck at home. And if you are stuck at home, you might as well take a look at Cabela’s Careers site too. You can check out their testimonials and culture quiz, or you can just head straight for their job listings. We’re going to pass over all of the retail positions (there are a ton of them), and only look at corporate jobs that might be suitable for new or recent grads. These include (all positions in Sidney, NE unless otherwise noted):

Cabela’s has one of the worst applicant tracking systems that I’ve ever seen. It’s “Powered by Kenexa,” and it’s completely unusable. I slogged through it so you don’t have to, so the positions above should give you a good idea of what kind of entry level opportunities exist at Cabela’s. There are more entry level postings than just these, but I can only bang my head against a wall for so long.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Do you shop at Cabela’s?

One Kings Lane

Willy Franzen — Tue, 22 Mar 2011 16:01:50 +0000

Want to sign up for One Kings Lane? Here’s an invite.

I was way ahead of the game when I told you about Gilt Groupe three years ago (it’s still where I get most of my non Bonobos clothes). Back then it was still unclear whether online sample sales would be successful–now there’s no question. Daily deals are as hot as can be, and One Kings Lane was founded in 2009 to offer the “world’s top home decor brands and designers at up to 70% off retail.” They’re headquartered in San Francisco, CA, but they also have large presences in New York, NY and Los Angeles, CA. One Kings Lane has found an extremely lucrative niche, and now they’re focused on growing their user base and continuing to deliver amazing deals on high-end products. The business model is proven, but One Kings Lane is facing stiff competition–especially from Gilt Home.

Sample These Jobs

The One Kings Lane website doesn’t show you much unless you’re a member (you can sign up here). That’s by design. Even though anyone can sign up, they want their sales to feel exclusive. They not only want you to get excited about the massive discount that you’re about to get, but they want you to feel like you’re an insider who deserves to get such a discount. The psychology works. The company increased sales 500% from 2009 to 2010, and it looks like that growth is continuing. Just look at One Kings Lane’s Jobs page. They have a ton of openings, which is a prime indicator of a company that is doing well. Right now a number of those openings seem suitable for new or recent grads including Assistant Buyer (Los Angeles), Customer Support Specialist (San Francisco), Event Product Specialist (New York), Junior QA Engineer (San Francisco), Logistics Coordinator (San Francisco), Merchandise Assistant (New York), Merchandise Assistant (Los Angeles), and Web/Mobile User Experience Designer (San Francisco). One Kings Lane looks like an awesome company to work for if you’re interested in home decor, so give these jobs a closer look.

Links to Help You Begin Your Research

Have you signed up for One Kings Lane?