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New Site Takes Business Bartering Into 21st Century.


BARTERING is a business practice brilliant in concept, but limited in practicality. If the accountant doesn't need a new suit, the tailor is out of luck at tax time.

Now take the age-old concept of bartering and bring it into the Net world. What if bartering no longer had to be one on one? Then the tailor could offer his services to a caterer, collect virtual credit, then "pay" an accountant active in the same bartering community with the credit.

Los Angeles-based LassoBucks.com is blazing the virtual way for a new bartering dynamic. In doing so, it has created a new resource for small and mid-sized companies notorious for being short on cash but big on needs.

"We offer a very direct value proposition to our members: We make their wallets bigger by creating a new type of currency," explained LassoBucks CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board.  Timothy Fong. "The concept of bartering may seem old-fashioned to some, but the concept is incredibly intuitive to small-business owners."

LassoBucks members currently offer computer and legal consulting, gourmet gift baskets A gift basket, or fruit basket is typically a gift that is delivered to the recipient at their home or workplace. There are different varieties of gift baskets, some which have fruit only, some with dry/canned goods only (such as tea, crackers and jam) although the standard  and stays in bed-and-breakfast establishments, to name just a few goods and services In economics, economic output is divided into physical goods and intangible services. Consumption of goods and services is assumed to produce utility (unless the "good" is a "bad"). It is often used when referring to a Goods and Services Tax. . As the virtual marketplace continues to evolve, Fong expects services rather than physical goods to become the dominant type of exchange.

Anna-Bella Inc., an upscale woman's clothing Noun 1. woman's clothing - clothing that is designed for women to wear
A-line - women's clothing that has a fitted top and a flared skirt that is widest at the hemline; "it is called the A-line because the effect resembles the capital letter A"
 manufacturer headquartered in North-ridge, has used the barter barter: see exchange.
barter

Direct exchange of goods or services without the use of money or any other intervening medium of exchange. Barter is conducted either according to established rates of exchange or by bargaining.
 site for about four months now. In exchange for garments sold for "lassobucks," the company has received Web design consulting, directory advertising and window cleaning services.

"We estimate that we've gotten many thousands of dollars worth of services while saving thousands of dollars through the bartering process," said Desiree Zuckerman, Anna-Bella's director of marketing. "LassoBucks has given us more flexibility. It serves as a great resource, it lets us get rid of our product and it gives us a major discount on the work we want."

The revenue stream comes from charging a small percentage of the value of each exchange, much like eBay. The company received its seed funding Seed funding is investing capital to begin a new project, so that it has enough funds to sustain itself for a period of development until it reaches either a state where it is able to continue funding itself, or has created something in value so that it is worthy of future rounds  from Zone Ventures, and is currently looking for Looking for

In the context of general equities, this describing a buy interest in which a dealer is asked to offer stock, often involving a capital commitment. Antithesis of in touch with.
 its second investment round.

Analysts haven't studied online barter companies closely enough to comment, except to say that there is no proven track record. Forrester Research Forrester Research is an independent technology and market research company that provides its clients with advice about technology's impact on business and consumers. Corporate facts
  • Founded: 1983 by George F.
 Inc. expects online exchange to help boost business-to-business commerce to $1.3 trillion by 2003.

Other types of online barter exchanges barter exchange barter nTauschbörse f  exist, and Fong expects several LassoBucks-like constructs to soon hit the Web. The company presently has about 10,000 members and adds a couple hundred more every day.

As the first site of its kind, LassoBucks has had to tackle the tough task of educating the market. To stay one step ahead, it will soon launch a variety of notable strategic partnerships with such entities as small-business expert Jane Applegate and her DigitalWork.com portal, small-business-centric iNeed.com, and the Women's Economic Development Corp.
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Comment:New Site Takes Business Bartering Into 21st Century.
Author:FISHER, SARA
Publication:Los Angeles Business Journal
Article Type:Brief Article
Geographic Code:1U9CA
Date:Feb 7, 2000
Words:471
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