They have made a successful business out of gathering and selling second hand stuff. They started doing this in 2003 in college campuses. They got in touch with university-based websites on which students would buy and sell anything and everything like used mattresses and even textbooks. The main purpose of this business was to make a lot of money through advertising. But it did not happen as easily it is talked about here. The CheggPost as it was called before, had to gain some traction on a few campuses but failed to take off. But the owners took this in their stride and worked towards their success.
Rashid had noticed that all college/university office websites had students looking for used / second hand textbooks. This was so because not everyone could afford a new textbook and textbooks are a major requirement. Therefore, Rashid and Phumbra’s model did not work. They had to start all over again.
Students who had bought the textbooks would sell them to the college store as they could not find buyers online. Hence, they had no other means and would sell them at a much lower price. So, in 2007 both the co-owners of Chegg.com drew up a new plan and cam up with a new idea of renting text books. But getting investors to invest money into this venture was difficult. They had no support from people too. They were considered to be crazy. But today it is preparing for its third year in this venture. And the best part is that this business is doing really well. In 2008, the owners shocked everyone when their revenue totaled up to $ 10 million. And they have already surpassed this number.
Now this is something that is most unusual. No one ever thought they could make money out of something like this. The best part s the need for textbooks will always be there. Therefore, there will always be a need for something like this. This kind of venture has helped scores of students to save some money on their course books and even get hands on the ones that are really expensive. It is a very clever way of making money and it is even helping students.
Today the e-businesses are a rage and therefore, it works in the favor of this venture. We won’t be surprised if many more ventures like this pop up. We need to look at different opportunities and openings like this. The recession has proved that stable businesses which have been around for centuries too, can collapse. So be a little bolder and try something new.