The latest version of Popula’s combination auction and fixed-price marketplace boasts great price, simple user interface and irreverent atmosphere.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – August 1, 2002 Popula Company, Inc. has announced its release of PopShops, the fixed-price annex to its flagship auction product. Merchants on the new and improved Popula will enjoy the ability to reach a wide variety of collectors of rare goods, including rare and out-of-print books and ephemera, and vintage dcor and apparel, selling either at auction or at the fixed-price PopShops. In addition, the automatic PopShops Faade Generator is available to PopShops merchants in order to create a personalized presence on the site, where they may add their own logos and photos, and promote their own websites and other selling venues. Popula auctions are free of listing fees for merchants who list over 100 auctions in a calendar month, and a PopShops account costs $10/month or $100/year, plus 10% commissions on successful sales.
“The response has been fantastic so far,” says Maria Bustillos, the company’s co-founder and CEO. “This is really a leap forward for us and for our merchants. Our traffic numbers are just clicking up every single week, and we’re just sky-high. The response proves that we’re right about going back to the ‘old-fashioned’ way of doing business online, where buyers and sellers can connect with a minimum of interference from the site’s operator.”
Popula is presently accepting uploads from most database formats for conversion into PopShops. The company’s proprietary Populator system, a free, Access-based product, is also available on the site. “We have a first-rate tech team,” says Oliver Corlett, the company’s President. “In the next few months we’ll be adding a number of useful tools to Popula’s arsenal. These will make our merchants’ businesses still easier to operateand to expand.”
The company recently signed an agreement with BookFinder.com, which will be searching the PopShops book inventory, and is in negotiations with several other strategic partners. “We support independent merchants,” says Bustillos, “and are committed to finding partners who approach doing business on the Internet the same way we do. We are building the future of Internet marketplaces.”
About Popula
Popula is an Internet marketplace for buyers and sellers of rare and collectible goods. The company was founded in 1998.
CONTACT: Maria Bustillos, 213.445-7691 maria@popula.com