TicketsNow is one of the (if not the) largest seller of secondhand tickets. The company took what was previously a loose network of ticket brokers and tied them all together into the ticketsnow.com website, a one-stop place to buy secondhand sporting, concert, and theater tickets.
TicketsNow was founded in 1999 by Mike Domek (originally as VIP Tour Company) with $100. Since then it has grown without any outside funding, until getting $8 million just recently. This first round came from Portage Venture Partners in Northfield; Draper Fisher Jurvetson in Menlo Park, Calif.; DFJ Portage Venture Partners, a joint venture of the two firms, and J.B. Pritzker's New World Ventures in Evanston. More funding is expected later this year.
Dimensions: 200+ people x 7 years x $140 million in 2005
Funding: $100 initial funding from founder + $8 million (VCs)
Customers: General public
Location: Chicago [Crystal Lake] + www.ticketsnow.com
What's Next: Fill out the management team with experienced people, raise an additional $16-$32 million later 2006
