Analysis of biggest e-commerce failures of all time to find out why they failed and what smart operators can do to safeguard their own future. For full story go to https://blog.trybeans.com/the-main-reason-fast-growing-e-commerce-sites-fail-7b051b59bab6

1. HOW The 20 FAST GROWING
E-STORES FAILED
Learning from e-commerce failures
https://business.trybeans.com

2. Raised $65 million
Based in Los Angeles
2006-2016Nasty Gal
Retention Issues
Vintage fashion for women
Fashion
Fastest growing online retailer in 2012
No Product Market Fit Poor Management

3. Raised $330 million
Based in New York
2011-2014Fab.com
Retention Issues
Daily design inspirations
Household items
Invested all its resource on unsustainable
acquisition
No Product Market Fit Poor Management

4. Raised $20 million
Based in San Francisco
2013-2016Dot & Bo
Retention Issues
Designer home furnishings
Household items
Customers complained of a bad quality
No Product Market Fit Poor Management

5. Raised $180 million
Based in San Francisco
1999-2000Pets.com
Retention Issues
Pet supplies e-retailer
Pets
Sold products at a loss as an acquisition tool
No Product Market Fit Poor Management

6. Raised $650 million
Based in Atlanta
1999-2001Webvan
Retention Issues
On-demand grocery delivery
Delivery
Sold an upmarket product at mass market
price
No Product Market Fit Poor Management

7. Raised $166 million
Based in Los Angeles
1997-2001eToys.com
Retention Issues
Selling toys online
Toys
CAC was higher than CLV
No Product Market Fit Poor Management

8. Raised $97 million
Based in Berlin, Germany
2012-2017Auctionata
Retention Issues
Auction for Antiques and Arts
Auction house
The company was accused of fraud
No Product Market Fit Poor Management

9. Raised $52 million
Based in Toronto
2012-2016SHOP.cA
Canadian Amazon
General Goods
CLV did not match expectation
Retention Issues No Product Market Fit Poor Management

10. Raised $95 million
Based in Montreal
2009-2016Beyond the
Rack
(BTR)
Retention Issues
Canadian Amazon
Fashion
Unable to get customers to come back
No Product Market Fit Poor Management

11. Raised $52 million
Based in New Delhi, India
2014-2016PepperTap
On-demand grocery delivery
Delivery
Sold an upmarket product at mass market
price
Retention Issues No Product Market Fit Poor Management

12. Raised $45 million
Based in Vancouver, Canada
1996-2017Shoes.com
Shoes and accessories
Fashion
They became infamous for poor service and
botched orders
Retention Issues No Product Market Fit Poor Management

13. Raised $52 million
Based in New York
2010-2016Choxi.com
Online discount store
General Store
Unhappy customers created an Facebook
complaints page
Retention Issues No Product Market Fit Poor Management

14. Raised $135 million
Based in London, U.K.
1998-2000Boo.com
Online fashion retailer
Fashion
Scaled to 400 employees before launching
their store
Retention Issues No Product Market Fit Poor Management

15. Raised $27 million
Based in Wisconsin, USA
1998-2000Alice.com
Amazon with a twist
General Store
They charged manufacturers for carrying their
goods
Retention Issues No Product Market Fit Poor Management

16. Raised $15 million
Based in San Francisco
2013-2017Lily
Robotics
Autonomous drones
Drones
Was not able to ship a working product
Retention Issues No Product Market Fit Poor Management

17. Raised $54 million
Based in New York
2008-2017Jackthreads
Smart everyday style for
men
Fashion
Had very low retention rate
Retention Issues No Product Market Fit Poor Management

18. Raised $54 million
Based in New York
2009-2016One Kings
Lane
Luxury home decor
Household furnishing
Bad retention on their targeted market
Retention Issues No Product Market Fit Poor Management

19. Raised $12 million
Based in Spokane, Washington
2008-2013Ecomom
Baby Apparel
Mother and Child
Goods
Acquisition cost was higher than CLV
Retention Issues No Product Market Fit Poor Management

20. Raised $286 million
Based in New York
2007-2016Gilt
Luxury shopping and lifestyle
Fashion
Failed to retain customers while scaling
Retention Issues No Product Market Fit Poor Management

21. Sources
http://betakit.com/shop-ca-has-
filed-for-bankruptcy-in-a-last-
ditch-effort-to-find-a-buyer/
https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/bl
ogs/insight/shopca-files-for-
bankruptcy-looks-for-buyer-
200543508.html
https://venturebeat.com/2017/0
2/12/what-went-seriously-
wrong-with-lily-robotics/
http://montrealgazette.com/bus
iness/local-business/what-
went-wrong-with-montreals-
beyond-the-rack
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Be
yond_the_Rack
https://www.racked.com/2017/
5/11/15623588/jackthreads-
going-out-of-business-sale-
mens-basics
https://qz.com/669142/peppert
aps-collapse-shows-
everything-that-is-wrong-with-
indias-young-internet-
companies/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pe
pperTap
https://www.forbes.com/sites/r
yanmac/2015/12/15/lessons-
from-the-trouble-at-gilt-groupe-
and-one-kings-
lane/#509fe6ee4987
https://www.yahoo.com/style/s
hoes-com-officially-bankrupt-
customers-181213285.html
http://vancouversun.com/busin
ess/local-business/vancouver-
ecommerce-retailer-shoes-
com-goes-bankrupt
https://www.recode.net/2015/9/
30/11619054/thrillist-and-
jackthreads-raise-54-million-
split-into-separate
https://www.digitalcommerce3
60.com/2017/01/04/troubled-e-
retailer-choxi-awaits-bidders-
amid-bankruptcy/
https://www.digitalcommerce36
0.com/2017/01/04/troubled-e-
retailer-choxi-awaits-bidders-
amid-bankruptcy/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lil
y_Robotics,_Inc.
https://thenextweb.com/entrepr
eneur/2011/10/27/17-dot-com-
failures-and-their-modern-
counterparts/#.tnw_TXl4HjO4
http://web.archive.org/web/200
10927092825/http://boo.com/
http://www.resellerratings.com/
store/Dot_and_Bo

22. Sources
http://www.latimes.com/busin
ess/la-fi-nasty-gal-20170224-
story.htmls
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Gilt_Groupe
http://montrealgazette.com/busin
ess/local-business/what-went-
wrong-with-montreals-beyond-
the-rack
http://uk.businessinsider.com
/how-billion-dollar-startup-
fab-died-2015-
2?op=1&r=US&IR=T
https://www.techinasia.com/
raising-us50-million-indias-
largest-online-grocer-shut-
shop
http://www.smartinsights.com/dig
ital-marketing-strategy/online-
business-revenue-models/an-
ecommerce-business-failure-
example/
https://www.recode.net/2016/
9/24/13040938/soohoo-at-
the-end-of-the-day-dot-bo-
just-failed
https://www.recode.net/201
6/9/24/13040938/soohoo-at-
the-end-of-the-day-dot-bo-
just-failed
http://uk.businessinsider.com/gilt
-groupe-story-2015-
2?r=US&IR=T
https://www.wsj.com/articles/
SB973617475136917228
http://www.businessinsider.c
om/petscom-ceo-julie-
wainwright-2011-2?IR=T
https://techvibes.com/2016/07/05
/shop-ca-files-for-bankruptcy
http://www.sfgate.com/news/
article/Webvan-goes-under-
Online-grocer-shuts-down-
2901586.php
https://techcrunch.com/2013
/09/27/why-webvan-failed-
and-how-home-delivery-2-0-
is-addressing-the-problems/
https://www.sitejabber.com/revie
ws/www.beyondtherack.com
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/
EToys.com
https://fail92fail.wordpress.c
om/tag/etoyscom/
http://betakit.com/shop-ca-has-
filed-for-bankruptcy-in-a-last-
ditch-effort-to-find-a-buyer/
https://news.artnet.com/mark https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ http://host.madison.com/ct/news/