电子商务：维尼特•巴拉拉与马克•劳

亚马逊旗下Quidsi公司创始人

    维尼特•巴拉拉与马克•劳是发小。2005年，两人合作成立了Diapers.com网站。传统观点认为，在线销售散装商品无利可图。但巴拉拉与劳对这种言论却并不买账。在商业计划书中，他们把尿不湿定位成“为招揽客户亏本出售的商品以及建立客户关系的媒介”。便宜的尿不湿可以吸引忙碌的妈妈们。而通过免费、快速的送货服务和高度个性化的客户服务，Diapers.com能够争取到足够多的客户。妈妈们会再次访问这个网站，而这次买的就不仅是尿不湿，还有一些价格更昂贵的商品，比如折叠式婴儿车和玩具等。

    巴拉拉和劳把他们的公司命名为Quidsi，在拉丁语中意为“如果……会怎样？”他们建立了一个非常讲究的、一目了然的门面，目前里面存放了超过25，000件婴儿用品。其后，他们建立起复杂而精细的物流系统和日臻完善的企业。他们设计了一款软件，可以从23个不同尺寸的箱子中，找出货运成本最低的那一个。劳发明了一种算法，来确定精确的库存数量以及何时补充库存。而且，Quidsi对货运商的选择范围广泛而灵活，不仅有当地的货运商，也包括业务范围覆盖全国的货运商。这不但降低了成本，还能保证订单准时送达。

    鉴于亚马逊（Amazon）在价格与货运方面已经占据先机，所以很显然，仅靠这些策略并不足以使Quidsi胜出。然而，正如妈妈们平常所做的，她们光顾了网站，然后她们会告诉朋友：再也不用深夜为了买尿不湿奔波，或者到好市多（Costco）排队买婴儿食品了。去年，Diapers.com的收入达到3亿美元。其中包括生活必需品专营网站Soap.com的收入。这家网站成立于2010年，可以为妈妈们提供其他25，000件商品。Soap.com与Diapers.com使用相同的结账系统，并坚持相同的价值定位：低廉价格，优质服务，快速送达。

    很明显，Quidsi在谋求获得更多，所以去年11月份，亚马逊收购这家公司，就没什么大惊小怪的了（最终价格：5.45亿美元）。但这家西雅图网络零售业巨头看中的不是Quidsi忠诚的客户群或物流业务；公司得到的是巴拉拉和劳这个天才二人组，他们将继续在新泽西总部负责Quidsi的运营。今年7月，Quidsi团队又成立了宠物用品销售网站Wag.com。Quidsi的创始人一定能扭转Pets.com的颓势，不信就拭目以待吧。美国精品投资银行Stifel Nicolaus的网络分析师乔丹•罗翰表示：“低利润和免费货运一直是亚马逊的王牌。而马克与维尼特却勇敢地闯入了亚马逊的地盘，而且还取得了成功。”

E-commerce: Vinit Bharara and Marc Lore

Founders, Quidsi

Amazon

    When childhood friends Vinit Bharara and Marc Lore launched Diapers.com in 2005, conventional wisdom said you couldn't make money selling bulk commodities online. Bharara and Lore weren't buying it. Their business plan envisioned diapers as a "loss leader and relationship builder." Low-priced diapers would get busy moms in the door. Diapers.com would win those moms over via free, fast shipping and high-touch customer service. Moms would return to buy not just diapers but also pricier gear like strollers and toys.

    Bharara and Lore called their new company Quidsi, Latin for "What if?" They built an elegant, intuitive storefront that now stocks more than 25,000 baby items. Behind it, they set up a sophisticated logistics and fulfillment enterprise. They designed software that determines which of 23 different-sized boxes should be used to ship an order at the lowest possible price. Lore created an algorithm to determine precise inventory amounts and when to reorder. And Quidsi uses a range of national and local shippers to keep costs down and make sure orders arrive on time.

    Given that Amazon was already winning the price and delivery game, this wasn't obviously a winning strategy. But the moms came, and as moms do, they told their friends: No more late night diaper runs or standing in line at Costco to buy formula. Last year, Diapers.com posted $300 million in revenue. That included sales from Soap.com, a dedicated site for household essentials, which launched in July 2010 and offered moms another 25,000 items to buy. Soap.com shares a checkout cart with Diapers.com and offers the same value proposition: low prices, great service, fast delivery.

    Clearly the Quidsi guys were onto something, so it came as little surprise when Amazon scooped up the company last November (final price: $545 million). But the giant Seattle e-tailer didn't just get Quidsi's loyal customer base or logistics operation; it acquired the genius duo of Bharara and Lore, who continue to run Quidsi from its headquarters in New Jersey. This past July the Quidsi team launched pet supply site Wag.com. Bet on Quidsi's founders to overturn the hapless legacy of Pets.com. Says Jordan Rohan, an Internet analyst at boutique investment bank Stifel Nicolaus: "Marc and Vinit ventured boldly into Amazon's province, the land of low margins and free shipping, and they emerged victorious."