We’ve all been there: You’ve been waiting patiently for a big, bold offer, only to be disappointed.
You don’t know what to expect.
You are ready to pay, but then suddenly, “payless” arrives in your inbox.
It is the moment you’ve been looking for, and then you realize you’re paying for nothing.
You’re not just paying for a little bit of free stuff, you’re getting free stuff.
“Payless” is an acronym for “Pay with Value,” and it’s a term that has become synonymous with Amazon.com, and now it’s even on our phones.
When you first get a call from Payless, it is a familiar sound, and that’s the first thing you hear.
We hear the word payless every time someone calls us to inquire about a particular product or service.
But, as we’ve been writing about Payless for nearly three years now, Payless has evolved into a much more powerful brand that helps drive the growth of an online brand.
The company is now worth $6 billion and is a leader in the industry.
“We are incredibly excited about the opportunity to expand our reach,” said Tim Pecoraro, chief executive officer of Payless.
“Our products have a broad appeal, and we are confident that Payless can be a leading player in online retail and online commerce.”
But the journey to this moment wasn’t easy.
We got here.
Payless launched in 1999, a few years after eBay had already been established.
The store wasn’t really about paying, and the customer didn’t really care.
Instead, Payload was a place to find things that people wanted, such as a new product or a deal.
Peco says the concept of the store was based on the fact that people could shop for products and services anywhere, anytime.
So, when Payload launched, it was a good way for customers to discover and shop online.
When Payload closed in 2012, it went on to become a pioneer in online commerce.
PECORARO: In 1999, we did a really big bet.
We said, “We’re going to build the first online retailer that was going to take a customer-driven approach to buying.”
We started the business and built Payload, which was the first of many retailers.
But it was in 1998, in the middle of the dot-com boom, that Payload became the first one to really make a splash in the online shopping space.
It was the one that launched the online business and the online retail space in general.
Now Payload is worth $4 billion, and it has become the most-used brand in the world, with about 8.5 billion shoppers worldwide.
Now, in 2018, Payfree, the parent company of Payload and a number of other online retailers, is going to become the company that will ultimately make a bigger impact in the marketplace.
And we’re excited to be part of that journey.
PAYLESS: It was an incredibly tough decision to leave eBay, but we believe we’re a more successful company today because of it.
We’ve always had the same mission and vision, and at Payless we have that same vision.
We’re committed to helping people find the best bargains and best value for their money.
We have a unique approach to helping shoppers discover the best deals online, because that’s what makes us a true online retailer.
The key to our success is we have this incredible community of loyal shoppers, and our mission is to help people find products and service that they really like and love.
That is the brand we’re known for.
The first time I met Payless co-founder and CEO Tim Peca, we were in an elevator and he asked me, “How do you make this company more profitable?”
The answer was simple: We sell products that people want, and people want them in very large quantities.
We can’t get a deal online, so we have to work with a partner to find the most attractive price.
That’s the way it works.
It’s not that we can’t find the right product, but our customers have to pay us to sell it.
In a recent interview, Peca talked about why he decided to take over Payless in 2009.
“It was like a real no-brainer for us,” he said.
We felt like we were at a point where we were building an empire.
We were at the stage where we could make some really big bets.
So we did it, and I think we’re very lucky.
PICORAROS: It’s an incredible honor to be able to become part of a group of entrepreneurs who believe in the power of technology.
Payload had a strong digital presence, which helped drive online shopping.
Payfree was the biggest online retailer in the United States, and by