Has anyone in this space started competing on price yet?
Merchants are expected to offer a "deal" on their merchandise / services at 50% off. After that, the merchant gives Groupon 50% of the sale price.
So, for a sushi restaurant that regularly prices an item at $20, they are selling to customer for $10, and giving Groupon $5. I can see how this makes sense for businesses with extremely high margins (like sushi), but what about everyone else? Will merchants be willing to take a loss if there's no guarantee of a recurring customer?
Anyone have a sense for the gross margins at the type of businesses Groupon targets?