1Mby1M Deal Radar: Orabrush, Provo, Utah

Orabrush is an e-commerce business that has made extensive use of social media to create demand for what can be an overlooked product – a tongue cleaner – among a variety of consumer demographics. We showcase it in today’s Deal Radar as an example of how new products can be brought to market using Internet

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1Mby1M Incubation Radar 2011: GrillGrate, Cartersville, Georgia

The 1M/1M Incubation Radar, part of my global initiative that aims to help a million entrepreneurs reach a million dollars in annual revenue by 2020, starts 2011 with GrillGrate, which makes modular plates with a raised rail surface to use on top of grills, making it easier to cook and sear food without burning it

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1Mby1M Deal Radar 2010: Groupon

By Sramana Mitra and Melanie Blake Deal Radar ends 2010 with a company that has made as many headlines this year as it has dollars – Groupon. Just a few weeks after turning down a $6 billion offer from Google, Groupon plans to raise $1 billion in private funds. First reported on VC Experts and

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Building A Niche E-Commerce Powerhouse: Coastal Contacts CEO Roger Hardy (Part 9)

Sramana: How well are you prepared to enter and compete in the eyeglasses market? Roger Hardy: We have started sourcing the planet for eyeglass components, such as stainless steel and titanium frames. We have also started sourcing all of the products that go into them, such as German quality lenses and Korean quality lenses.

Building A Niche E-Commerce Powerhouse: Coastal Contacts CEO Roger Hardy (Part 8)

Sramana: Essentially you are supporting your Japanese operations with your Vancouver fulfillment center and your Holland operations with your Stockholm fulfillment center. Is that correct? Roger Hardy: Yes. The nice thing about contacts is that they are lightweight and high value. There is a flight that leaves every day and arrives in Japan that night.

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Building A Niche E-Commerce Powerhouse: Coastal Contacts CEO Roger Hardy (Part 7)

Sramana: What were the circumstances of the post-$50 million era? How did you find those two companies? Roger Hardy: We looked at staying within the core competency of taking good care of customers. We found a company in Japan that we thought was growing and doing a good job serving their customers.

Building A Niche E-Commerce Powerhouse: Coastal Contacts CEO Roger Hardy (Part 6)

Sramana: What specifically did you do to encourage your customers to make referrals? Roger Hardy: I would love to tell you that we split the atom, but it was just a 10% coupon that they could share with their friends.

1Mby1M Deal Radar 2010: ShopIgniter, Portland, Oregon

As we saw in the recent Tech Stocks post on Amazon and eBay, retail analysts expect e-commerce to increase at a much higher rate than traditional sales this November and December. Social commerce is still small: blogs and social networking sites are the first step in the shopping process for just 3% of customers. But

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