Shoparatti: Melissa Rivers Fashions a Deal Site
| 4 | Apr 2011 |
Best known for policing the fashion world from the red carpet and beyond, Melissa Rivers is now set to keep watch over the Internet’s best deals.
Rivers is editor-in-chief of the newly launched Shoparatti.com, billed as a one-stop destination for the best selections of bargains from hundreds of daily deals sites .
With the number of those websites — like Groupon, Guilt and Buy With Me — increasing each month and shoppers often receiving so many daily deal emails that they may tend to delete them without looking, Rivers said the goal of Shoparatti is to point consumers in the right direction to secure the day’s best bargains.
“We try to sort through them all and pick out the top four each day,” Rivers told BusinessNewsDaily. “It is just simply a time-saver.”
Rivers said she is drawing on her expertise in spotting lifestyle, entertainment and fashion trends to make her selections.
But to catch her eye, she said, the deals need to have good value and offer good-quality products.
“Things that are classics or very of-the-moment,” Rivers said of the deals she favors.
In addition to posting the deals on the website, Rivers’ daily selections are also on newsfeed posts via Facebook and an iPhone app.
The popularity of daily deal sites is undeniable. According to research by Site Jabber, the top six sites alone receive 20 million visitors a month. That number is up 600 percent from just one year ago.
Rivers believes the current economic climate has contributed to the sitesâ traffic , as Americans turn to the Internet for ways to save any cash they can.
“We live in a society where commerce is god,” she said. “You always want to get the most bang for your buck.”
In addition to her work with Shoparatti, Rivers is the host of “Fashion Police” on TV’s E! network and stars alongside her legendary mother, Joan, in the reality show “Mother Knows Best,” on the WE Network.
Like many others who work alongside various relatives in a family business, Rivers said balancing the professional and personal relationships can often be tricky.
“The onus is on the parent to not go into parent mode,” Rivers said. “At the same time, (the child) has to know when to defer to the elder.”
In 2009, the two put their professional relationship and business expertise to the test on NBC’s “Celebrity Apprentice,” working for billionaire business mogul Donald Trump in a series aimed at raising money for charity.
While she did hear the famous "You’re fired" phrase from Trump, Rivers said she took away some positive business lessons that still stick with her.
"It teaches you how to come up with a business plan," she said of the TV show, "and how to ask (the right) questions of clients."
Though she continues to have a host of projects on her plate, Rivers said she is especially excited about the potential of Shoparatti.
"This idea spoke to me," she said. "It's practical, and it makes your day easier."
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