Biz: Sometimes, Groupon can accidentally strangle small a business
- The experience jaded me, and the interactions with the few bad Groupon customers we had jaded our staff. After all of this, I find myself not even willing to buy Groupons because I know how it could hurt a business.
- Posie’s Cafe owner Jessie Burke • Explaining how her experience with Groupon greatly damaged her Portland, Oregon-based business. Her deal, which offered a $6 deal for a $13 item, only earned her $3 for each item sold, with the other $3 going to Groupon. There wasn’t a cap on how many people could use it, so hundreds of people used it over a six-month period. At one point, the deal strangled her business so badly that she had to put $8,000 of her own money in just to cover payroll. While she doesn’t blame Groupon for her experience (she’s way quicker to blame herself), the post has spread online like wildfire over the last couple of days because of the implications it has for one of online shopping’s brightest shining stars. Groupon’s response is pretty reasonable. She’s right to blame herself, but Groupon should’ve told her how to avoid such a situation. source
