Freeflow teams up with internet giant

An award-winning Irish company which specialises in selling excess stock is joining forces with internet auction giant Ebay, in a move that could treble its sales.

Tralee-based Freeflow, a category winner in the 2006 Irish Times-backed Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Awards, is entering an exclusive deal to provide sales and administrative services to Ebay.

Freeflow chief executive, Alan Scroope said yesterday that the deal could ultimately treble its sales, which are heading for €26 million in its current financial year.

He added that the arrangement could double the company's sales during 2007.

Ebay has revenues of around $4.4 billion a year. The throughput of its private marketplace business, which Freeflow will be supporting, is $150 million.

However, Mr Scroope said Ebay was preparing to develop this business. "They've been keen to do that and they're going to put a lot of marketing dollars behind it, which will be good for us," he said.

Freeflow sells excess, unwanted and returned stock from its customers and partners. Its clients include many of the technology industry's big names, including Apple, Microsoft, 3Com and Motorola.

The company provides a range of services, including buying stock and selling it on, or managing the administrative and delivery side of the business.

For Ebay, it will provide "after- auction" services such as shipping, logistics and collecting and settlement.

Ebay's private marketplace is aimed at large corporations attempting to sell off excess and unwanted stocks. The sites through which it operates carry customers' own brands.

Freeflow estimates that the technology industry alone loses around $2 billion a year through not managing and disposing of excess and returned stock.

Its approach helps lengthen the lifetime and profitability of its clients' products.

Mr Scroope established the business five years ago from a bedroom in his mother-in-law's house. It now has offices in Hong Kong and California.

The company's headquarters are in Tralee, Co Kerry. In October this year, Mr Scroope was named Emerging Entrepreneur of the Year in the Ernst & Young-sponsored competition. The Irish Times is one of the award scheme's media partners.

Ebay is one of the the best-known worldwide companies in on-line auctions.

The Nasdaq-listed business has 212 million registered users around the world.

Last month, the US-based corporation revealed that in the three months to September 30th, it had revenues of $1.44 billion, and operating profits of $339 million, a fall of 5 per cent on the same period last year.