Ben Federman
Encyclopedia
Ben Federman an American entrepreneur, is the founder and CEO of 1SaleADay
, a large deal website. He has subsequently founded other online deal sites, including Ben's Outlet, Dynamite Time, and Shadora. He donates half of his companies' earnings to charity.
. As a child, he has stated “I was the guy selling stuff in the hallways of school. In the fourth grade I had a business selling candy to kids. I’d buy it for 10 cents and sell it for 50 cents.’’ He dropped out of school in 8th grade, later earning his high school equivalency degree. He joined the United States Army
at 18 and served a tour of combat in Afghanistan
.
and began working at a small electronics retailer. He became familiar with profit margins for electronics, then worked as a sales representative in web sales. He has stated “I used to spend a lot of time checking out big shopping sites like Amazon.com
. It dawned on me that, if you featured just one or two items at a time, you could get great volume pricing.”
from his apartment living room. Every 24 hours the company offers items discounted 80-90% off retail in the categories of electronics, watches, jewelry, and household goods. He started with one employee, and $200,000.00 in funding.
He initially went to trade shows for much of his bargain merchandise. For the first year and a half, he purposely did not make money off a single item (loss leading). He occasionally offered items for free, and the site's popularity increased via word of mouth and social media
.
After two years, the company began to turn a profit. As of July 2011 it sells up to 30,000 items a day, and has revenues of $60 million. As of September 2011, the website was one of the top most visited 500 websites, with over 150 million visitors per year and half a million a day.
In late 2010, Octagon Commerce received a multi-million investment from Optima Ventures, a Miami-based private equity
firm. In mid 2011, Federman began moving the firm to Miami Lakes, Southern Florida.
's young millionaires of 2011. He was interviewed on Fox Business in 2011. He has also been featured in The New York Times
, The Examiner
, Crain's New York Business, PBS Nightly Business Report, New York Daily News
, and The Miami Herald
.
1saleaday
1SaleADay is an Internet retailer with a deal-a-day format. The site was founded in 2007 by Ben Federman. 1SaleADay's main site offers one discounted item a day, the product can vary from a computer-related product to a magazine subscription. Products are listed at up to 80-90% off retail....
, a large deal website. He has subsequently founded other online deal sites, including Ben's Outlet, Dynamite Time, and Shadora. He donates half of his companies' earnings to charity.
Early life
Federman was born in 1983 in Milwaukee, WisconsinMilwaukee, Wisconsin
Milwaukee is the largest city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin, the 28th most populous city in the United States and 39th most populous region in the United States. It is the county seat of Milwaukee County and is located on the southwestern shore of Lake Michigan. According to 2010 census data, the...
. As a child, he has stated “I was the guy selling stuff in the hallways of school. In the fourth grade I had a business selling candy to kids. I’d buy it for 10 cents and sell it for 50 cents.’’ He dropped out of school in 8th grade, later earning his high school equivalency degree. He joined the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
at 18 and served a tour of combat in Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
.
Career
After his military service, he moved to BrooklynBrooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
and began working at a small electronics retailer. He became familiar with profit margins for electronics, then worked as a sales representative in web sales. He has stated “I used to spend a lot of time checking out big shopping sites like Amazon.com
Amazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc. is a multinational electronic commerce company headquartered in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the world's largest online retailer. Amazon has separate websites for the following countries: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, and...
. It dawned on me that, if you featured just one or two items at a time, you could get great volume pricing.”
1SaleADay
In mid-2007 he launched the online company 1SaleADay1saleaday
1SaleADay is an Internet retailer with a deal-a-day format. The site was founded in 2007 by Ben Federman. 1SaleADay's main site offers one discounted item a day, the product can vary from a computer-related product to a magazine subscription. Products are listed at up to 80-90% off retail....
from his apartment living room. Every 24 hours the company offers items discounted 80-90% off retail in the categories of electronics, watches, jewelry, and household goods. He started with one employee, and $200,000.00 in funding.
He initially went to trade shows for much of his bargain merchandise. For the first year and a half, he purposely did not make money off a single item (loss leading). He occasionally offered items for free, and the site's popularity increased via word of mouth and social media
Social media
The term Social Media refers to the use of web-based and mobile technologies to turn communication into an interactive dialogue. Andreas Kaplan and Michael Haenlein define social media as "a group of Internet-based applications that build on the ideological and technological foundations of Web 2.0,...
.
After two years, the company began to turn a profit. As of July 2011 it sells up to 30,000 items a day, and has revenues of $60 million. As of September 2011, the website was one of the top most visited 500 websites, with over 150 million visitors per year and half a million a day.
Octagon Commerce
In 2009 he began founding other online deal sites under his parent company Octagon Commerce. As of October 2011 they include Ben's Outlet for electronics, Shadora for jewelry, Dynamite Time for watches, PaperGoods for paper, and GlassesUnlimited for eyeglasses.In late 2010, Octagon Commerce received a multi-million investment from Optima Ventures, a Miami-based private equity
Private equity
Private equity, in finance, is an asset class consisting of equity securities in operating companies that are not publicly traded on a stock exchange....
firm. In mid 2011, Federman began moving the firm to Miami Lakes, Southern Florida.
Media presence
He interacts with customers via the 1SaleADay Facebook page, which as of September 2011 had over 300,000 fans. In Fall of 2011 he was highlighted as one of Entrepreneur MagazineEntrepreneur Magazine
Entrepreneur is a publication that carries news stories about entrepreneurialism, small business management, and business opportunities. It is published by Entrepreneur Media Inc., headquartered in Irvine, California....
's young millionaires of 2011. He was interviewed on Fox Business in 2011. He has also been featured in The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, The Examiner
The Examiner
The Examiner can refer to:* The Examiner , an early 18th century journal with contributions by Jonathan Swift*The Examiner, a weekly paper published between 1808 and 1886*The Examiner , a weekly paper in Beaumont, Texas...
, Crain's New York Business, PBS Nightly Business Report, New York Daily News
New York Daily News
The Daily News of New York City is the fourth most widely circulated daily newspaper in the United States with a daily circulation of 605,677, as of November 1, 2011....
, and The Miami Herald
The Miami Herald
The Miami Herald is a daily newspaper owned by The McClatchy Company headquartered on Biscayne Bay in the Omni district of Downtown Miami, Florida, United States...
.