Boo.com
The business, the turning points, and the decisions behind them.
01 / WHAT IT BUILT
What the company did
Boo.com was a short-lived British e-commerce company founded in 1999 by Swedish entrepreneurs Ernst Malmsten, Kajsa Leander and Patrik Hedelin, who had previously built the online bookstore Bokus.com. Headquartered on Carnaby Street in London, it aimed to become the world's leading online fashion retailer, selling branded apparel with an advanced website featuring 3D product views and a virtual shopping assistant. The company raised $135 million in venture capital, burned through it in 18 months, and was placed into receivership on May 18, 2000 - becoming one of the most famous casualties of the dot-com bubble.
02 / Boo.com FAILURE REASONS
Failure reasons
Boo.com spent ahead of revenue at every turn. It ballooned from 40 employees in a London office to 400 staff across eight global offices before its site even worked, and its over-engineered website - heavy with 3D views and virtual assistants - loaded too slowly for most users' dial-up connections, driving away the shoppers it needed. Complex international shipping and returns added costs while sales never materialized. When the dot-com bubble burst in spring 2000, investor confidence evaporated and the company failed to raise a final $20 million lifeline, forcing it into receivership.
03 / EVENT HISTORY
Events in the structured record
- Liquidation
BBC News (18 May 2000) reported London/Carnaby Street fashion e-tailer Boo.com collapsed through lack of funds after investors did not provide an additional $30m; founders asked KPMG to become liquidators and met staff that Thursday morning. About 300 jobs were at risk. Distinct from later brand/tech residual sales.
04 / CONTEMPORARY REBUILD ASSESSMENT
Difficulty of rebuilding this project today
Material for this section is being gathered and checked. It will appear here once ready.
Overall assessment: Not completed
05 / CAUSAL CHAIN
How the factors connect
- 01
Boo.com raised $135 million in venture capital and spent it in 18 months on global offices, 400 employees, extravagant marketing and an over-engineered website.
- 02
On May 18, 2000, after failing to raise a final $20 million lifeline as the dot-com bubble burst, the company was placed into receivership and liquidated.
- 03
The brand name, web address and related materials were sold to Fashionmall.com for $250,000; investors recouped only about $2 million of the more than $135 million poured in.
- 04
No reliable realized loss figure with clear subject, period and basis has been disclosed; venture capital spent is not a loss figure.