A Group Buying Site for Rich People

By Mikal E. Belicove|For Entrepreneur.com|March 3, 2011

The recent return of the luxury consumer has been well documented. Not only did Tiffany’s sales skyrocket over the holidays, sales at high-end shops Neiman Marcus and Bloomingdales have also seen their sales tick up.

But how do small business owners capitalize on the wealthy increasingly whipping out their wallets? Oddly enough, The New York Times has an answer: an exclusive group-buying site dubbed TimesLimited.

Similar to Groupon — the daily deal site that claims to have saved users more than $1.3 billion on everything from cupcakes to movie tickets — the Times expects its new TimesLimited group buying site to highlight local advertisers willing to offer up deals to its customers (readers). The difference? TimesLimited will focus on premium products and experiences offered for a limited time and in limited quantities.

The new service also combines an existing veteran sales staff that is already engaged in selling advertising to local merchants. And, that advertising targets an existing — trusting — audience. In that regard, TimesLimited is a natural extension of what the Times already does, which is…

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