Founded in 2000 by brothers Norman and Lawrence Fong, Techbargains.com is a leading online shopping portal focused on consumer technology products. The website has grown in popularity and now generates over 12 million monthly page views and draws over 1.3 million monthly unique visitors. In mid 2006, the company received an unsolicited LOI from a potential acquirer.

The Challenge

While Norman and Lawrence Fong were comfortable with the terms of the unsolicited LOI, they were interested in speaking with other potential buyers to ensure they chose the best partner. The Fongs decided the best way to maximize the value of their equity was to hire an investment bank to run an expansive process. Norman and Lawrence wanted their investment bank to bring them multiple LOIs and negotiate with multiple parties simultaneously. The Fongs chose to work with Arbor Advisors due to the high-level negotiation and operations expertise of Arbor's Managing Directors.

The Solutions

Exponential acquired Techbargains in April 2007, providing liquidity to Norman and Lawrence Fong. Exponential's infrastructure will allow Techbargains to scale significantly in coming years.

Arbor Value Add

• Contacted well over 100 potential strategic and financial acquirers while searching for the ideal partner
• Received four LOIs from potential buyers
• Increased the valuation from the original LOI by over 90%
• Negotiated a favorable tax structure for the founders
• Exceeded the valuation expectations of the founders
• Found the right partner to back Norman Fong's vision