This year’s Black Friday sales data is in, reaching a record-breaking $7.4 billion this year, which fell just short of the $7.5 billion predicted by Adobe Analytics. Average order value increased $5.9% YoY with top selling categories including toys, games and electronics such as Airpods, Samsung TVs and Apple laptops. According to TechCrunch, Black Friday sales made on smartphones totaled $2.9 billion, suggesting sales made via mobile may outperform web-based purchases made through computers in the future.
Similarly, Cyber Monday sales broke e-commerce records this year, generating $9.4 billion total in online transactions in the U.S. an impressive $12 million in sales per minute. E-commerce giants earning over $1 billion annually saw the greatest increase in revenue at 71% as they can tack on larger discounts and offer a broad product range while providing more delivery options for consumers. Smaller retailers saw revenue increase by 32%. According to Adobe Insights, major retailers invested heavily in online advertising, with paid search generating 24.4% of sales made on Monday.
In other news, Accel Partners announced the closing of its sixth India-focused venture fund valued at $550 million. The Silicon Valley based VC firm plans to back more early-stage startups in India as the country continues to rapidly adopt digital. Since 2015, Accel has funneled c.$1 billion dollars in venture funding into seed and early-stage startups in the area. The firm, which has over 50 members and nine partners in India, has successfully backed several multi-billion-dollar India-based tech companies including Flipkart, Freshworks and Blackbuck.
Amazon is partnering with Verizon to bring the power of 5G networks closer to customers with its new edge computing service called AWS WaveLength. With AWS computing, database, analytics and storage tools embedded at the edge of 5G networks, users can expect reduced latency and significantly faster response rates when retrieving data from cloud servers. According to industry analyst Chetan Sharma, the edge computing market is predicted to reach $4 trillion by 2030. Rollout of WaveLength is currently limited to a few dozen cities and nationwide coverage won’t be available for several years.
Cloud data protection and management platform Druva, has surpassed the $100 million ARR mark. The SaaS company reached unicorn status six months ago when it raised $130 million in funding from Viking Global Investors and other contributing backers. In its 11 year history, Druva has raised a total of $328 million in venture capital and has increased annual revenue by 3x in the past three years by providing a data center workloads platform on a cost-effective subscription model. Major companies protecting their cloud workloads with Druva’s platform (built on AWS) include Hitachi, Marriot, Pfizer and more.
New in FE exclusive listings, this week we have an E-Commerce business in the Celebrity Magazine and Entertainment niche. Listed at $441,000, this business offers an extensive library and back catalog of magazine memorabilia spanning several genres. Launched in 2008, the business has attracted a strong base of collectors and enthusiasts contributing to its steady revenue growth, high ARPO of c.$27.4, and impressive Repeat Customer Rate of c.20.7%. With a customer-centric model, access to exclusive products, and tens of thousands of positive reviews, a new owner will have plenty of resources to invest in growth. If you are interested in this business, please follow the link above to request a prospectus.
In events news, the FE International team has been in Sydney attending SaaStock Australasia this week. Founder Thomas Smale and CEO Ismael Wrixen enjoyed connecting SaaS founders and executives from all over the world at the annual conference. Next up will be our very own event in London on January 15th, 2020 focused on “How To: Raise Capital for your Technology Business”. Join us to learn best methods for raising capital from industry experts. Visit our SaaS, E-Commerce & Content Online Business Meetup page to save your seat before space runs out.
Continue reading below for more on Black Friday, Cyber Monday, Accel, Amazon, Verizon and Druva!
Listings
New
E-Commerce – Celebrity Magazine and Entertainment – $34K gross/mo
- Steady revenue growth with a high ARPO of c.$27.4 and impressive RCR of c.20.7%
- Exceptional customer relations with c.99.8% positive feedback rating and c.27,000 reviews on eBay alone
- Extensive operational track record spanning c.11 years
- Robust supplier relationships allowing the business to maintain stable unit economics
Yearly net profit: $151,000
Asking price: $441,000
Affiliate – Sporting Goods Guides & Reviews – $1.5K gross/mo
- Growing presence in the c.$60.9bn global sporting goods market
- Detailed content helping secure keyword rankings for c.17,000 keywords
- Steady traffic with c.263,000 visitors to the site over the LTM
- Lean operating model with high net margins and low owner involvement
Yearly net profit: $12,800
Asking price: $35,000
In the News…
Spike in Black Friday Sales Made Via Mobile
This year, Thanksgiving sales amounted to $4.2 billion. The following day, Black shoppers spend a record-breaking $7.4 billion on toys, games, electronics and more on smartphones, tablets and computers. Sales saw a $1.2 billion increase since 2018. These figures broke records but fell short compared to predictions made by Adobe Analytics, which tracks sales data throughout the season for 80 of the top 100 retailers in the U.S. Underwhelming sales have been attributed to the holiday shipping season starting earlier and earlier each year, with $81.5 billion in sales having been spent online since the beginning of November.
Cyber Monday Sales Break E-Commerce Records
Cyber Monday results broke sales records bringing in $9.4 billion in online transactions, a figure on par with analyst’s predictions. Sales made on Monday made via smartphones accounted for $3 billion worth of total sales, the first day to reach this milestone. According to Head of Marketing and Consumer Insights at Adobe, John Copeland, “Consumers capitalized on deals and ramped up spending, especially on smartphones, where activity increased on days when shoppers were snowed or rained in.”
Accel India Closes $550M Fund
Accel, the well-known VC firm recognized for successfully investing in early-stage startups, has wrapped up a $550 million venture fund. The fund will go towards investing in early-stage and seed level startups in India. The announcement comes soon after a similar $575 million dollar push in Europe and Israel which took place last May. Accel is attracted to the Indian market as its population continues to rapidly adopt digital. In 2018, the firm contributed to a seed financing round for India-based company, Flipkart. Majority stake in the e-commerce firm was later purchased by Walmart, earning Accel over $1 billion in returns.
Amazon and Verizon Enter 5G Edge Computing Collaboration
Amazon and Verizon are working to deliver 5G wireless networks closer to customers with a new service called WaveLength. The announcement was released on Tuesday by CEO Andy Jassy at AWS’s re:Invent conference. According to Aamazon, this new service “has the potential to deliver single-digit millisecond latencies to users.” Amazon will be adding WaveLength technology to specific parts of its wireless network. When the service is rolled out for more widespread use, consumers can expect shorter lag time and fewer disruptions when streaming on their devices. Self-driving vehicles, health care and other areas will see significant benefits from advanced connectivity as well.
Druva Reaches $100M ARR Mark
Druva recently announced it has reached the $100 million Annual Recurring Revenue mark. According to Crunchbase, other notable companies that have reached the impressive milestone include SM management company, Sprout Social, and work-management tool, Asana. The SaaS platform has reached unicorn status by providing a data-center workloads platform for over 800 customers, a figure double the amount seen 18 months ago. By removing the need for unnecessary hardware and capacity management, company has cut up to 50% of costs by offering the tool on a subscription model in a market “dominated by legacy hardware vendors”.