The company spent £12 million promoting the site and its logo of “no commission, no estate agents, no hassle”. Its revenue stream was intended to come from the sale of user data to financial institutions. The company decided to market its site when it admitted that the business model was not working.
Toyzone, a UK internet toy retailer backed by PR agent Jonathan Freud and entertainer Jonathan Ross, also announced yesterday on its site that it is now “closed for business.”
According to the Financial Times, it raised £2 million in funding in 1999 and subsequently made total sales of the same figure. The Financial Times adds that the final decision by Toyzone to cease trading was taken after US rival eToys announced this week that it is filing for bankruptcy.