Scanning real estate listings is a great way to check up on your competitors.
Interesting points from an article on MSNBC.COM.
Match.com is seeking about 60,000 square feet of space within a roughly four-mile radius of its Richardson headquarters. At the same time, upstart True.com just took over 25,000 square feet at Williams Square in Las Colinas.
Besides competing for new customers, Match and True are also romancing local employees. True claims a “significant number” of its 110 employees formerly worked for Match. The jilted Match is now seeking to take depositions from four of them, to see if contracts were broken or trade secrets revealed.
Match is predicting a 10% to 15% annual growth rate in its number of employees over the next three to four years, according to Paul Wolfe, vice president of human resources.
In the first quarter of this year, ended March 31, Match reported operating income (before amortization) of $6.3 million and revenue of $48.8 million.
Tim Sullivan, who has been its president for about three years, said the business is cash-flow positive.
According to Jupiter Research, about 30 million Americans use online dating services, giving Match a 40% share of that market.
Herb Vest, owner of True, is quoted as saying, “We went into this business to help reduce the national divorce rate.”
Scott Fowler said True expects to have 150 employees on board by the end of the year and 200 or more by the end of 2005.
