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Is Ruth Reichl Getting Into the Discount-Dining Game?

Photo: Melissa Hom

According to the Observer, Ruth Reichl, who’s working on a book for Random House (where she’ll also be an editor-at-large) is now quietly staffing up a food spinoff of discount site Gilt Groupe: “One might expect the site to look like the Gilt MANual blog, which pairs original lifestyle content with links to Gilt Groupe’s men’s wear sales.” The Observer points out that the site was recently valued at $1 billion; meanwhile, things aren’t so rosy at Groupon.

Though the site has experienced astronomical growth and is gearing up for a $25 billion IPO, Fox Business wonders whether a slew of imitators will eventually sink it, and whether it can effectively replace President and COO Robert Solomon, who stepped down last week. Plus, The Wall Street Journal points out that businesses who’ve been burned by the daily deal sites are getting savvier about negotiating.

Surging Groupon Faces Skepticism Amid Wave of Wannabes [Fox Business]
Burned by Daily-Deal Craze, Small Businesses Get Savvy [WSJ]
Golden Delicious: Ruth Reichl to Run Gilt Groupe Foodie Site [NYO]

Is Ruth Reichl Getting Into the Discount-Dining Game?