Drop (company)
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| Formerly | Massdrop |
|---|---|
| Company type | Subsidiary |
| Industry | Consumer electronics |
| Founded | 2012 in San Francisco, California, U.S. |
| Founders |
|
| Headquarters | , United States |
Area served | Worldwide |
Number of employees | 100+ |
| Parent | Corsair (2023–present) |
| Website | drop |
Drop (formerly Massdrop) is an American e-commerce company based in San Francisco, California. In July 2023, Corsair purchased Drop, while retaining its original brand and staff.
History
[edit]Drop founders Steve El-Hage and Nelson Wu met in Toronto, Canada, where El-Hage was studying economics at the University of Toronto.[1] The two had grown up using online forums as a way of exploring their hobbies, but believed these forums had many shortcomings, including disorganized meetups and unreliable group buys.[2] They thought that by combining their forum experiences with their interest in bulk buying, they could create a site that would better support their enthusiast in communities.[3] The pair moved to Silicon Valley, where they met Will Bright and started Massdrop in 2012.[1]
Drop changed its name from Massdrop in April 2019.
On July 17, 2023, Corsair announced it had acquired Drop.[4]
Business model
[edit]Initially, Drop sold products exclusively from existing manufacturers. Drop would organize and facilitate group buys for their community members.[5] They allowed community members to influence the products chosen to be sold through forums and polls.[6] Drop originally worked with various communities, but have since primarily sold products relating to the mechanical keyboard and audiophile communities.
The company has since introduced their own exclusive products,[7] collaborations,[5] and private-label products under the names Drop and Drop Studio.[8]
Past Drop products
[edit]Past products include the Massdrop x Sennheiser HD 6XX headphones,[6] Massdrop x Sennheiser HD 58X headphones,[9] Massdrop CTRL Mechanical Keyboard,[10] Massdrop x Sennheiser PC37X gaming headset,[11] Massdrop x Koss ESP/95X,[12] among others.
Funding
[edit]In September 2014, Drop raised $6.5 million in a Series A round led by Mayfield Fund with additional investment from previous backers Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, First Round Capital, and Cowboy Ventures.[1][13] In August 2015, the company secured $40 million in Series B funding led by August Capital with additional investment from Mayfield Fund, First Round Capital, and Cowboy Ventures.[14][15]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c Takahashi, Dean (September 24, 2014). "Massdrop raises $6.5M to enable enthusiast communities to use their massive buying power". Venture Beat. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
- ^ Green, Dennis (August 17, 2015). "This startup is reinventing the flash sale for discerning men — and it just raised $40 million". Business Insider UK. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
- ^ Konrad, Alex (June 11, 2014). "Massdrop's Zany Plan To Rally Internet Mobs For Discounts Is Working--For Now". Forbes. Retrieved December 8, 2014.
- ^ "Step forward in our evolution". Drop. Retrieved 2023-07-17.
- ^ a b Danziger, Pamela N. (2018-04-16). "Kickstarter Meets Costco". www.forbes.com. Forbes. Retrieved 2024-08-02.
- ^ a b Kronsberg, Matthew (2018-07-16). "The CEO Turning Passionate Gadget Fans Into Product Designers". www.bloomberg.com. Retrieved 2020-03-01.
- ^ "Massdrop Evolves Brand to Become Drop, Launches New User Experience to Enable Passions and Products". prnewswire.com. PR Newswire. 2019-04-29. Retrieved 2023-09-02.
- ^ Henderson, Bill (2018-05-28). "Massdrop HD 6XX Headphones Review". daily.slickdeals.net. Slickdeals. Retrieved 2024-08-02.
- ^ Picks, Amir Ismael, Insider. "Sennheiser released an affordable version of one of its best headphones — but there are only 5,000 pairs". Business Insider. Retrieved 2019-04-30.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Roach, Jacob. "The best mechanical keyboards you can buy". Business Insider. Retrieved 2019-04-30.
- ^ "Massdrop x Sennheiser PC37X Review: An Elusive Gem". Tom's Guide. 2017-01-27. Retrieved 2019-04-30.
- ^ Guttenberg, Steve. "Gobsmacked by the sound of the latest Massdrop Koss headphone". CNET. Retrieved 2019-04-30.
- ^ Ha, Anthony (September 24, 2014). "Massdrop Raises $6.5M To Turn Group Buying Into A Broader Community Platform". TechCrunch. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
- ^ Mac, Ryan (August 13, 2015). "After Nabbing Former Amazon Executive, Massdrop Rakes In $40 Million". Forbes. Retrieved August 23, 2017.
- ^ Ha, Anthony (August 13, 2015). "Group Commerce Startup Massdrop Raises $40M". TechCrunch. Retrieved August 23, 2017.