Matchbook Man:
Daniel Black's Dot-com
Helps Students Swap Books

Daniel Black '11, a dual major in economics and government, likes getting people togethernamely students who want to sell old textbooks with others who want to buy them. A month ago he launched a Web-based company called "BookMatchers, Inc." (http://www.bookmatchers.com/) designed to do just that.
The process is pretty simple. CMCers looking to sell textbooks log onto BookMatchers, create an account, and list their items. CMC classmates interested in buying them are prompted to send the seller an offer by e-mail. If accepted, the two then work out payment and delivery.
Black says that since its launch on Aug. 21, his business has already made "hundreds" of matches between sellers and buyers. CMC students unloading books are earning more this way, he says, than they would selling books for a fraction of their value to book stores that turn around and inflate used-book prices for maximum profit, or through big online venues such as Amazon or Alibris which charge transaction fees, commissions, shipping and postage.
Which brings Black to another point: Greennot just the spending kind, but the planet-friendly color. Since students are hand-delivering books to classmates on campus, Black says they are reducing potential waste produced by the packing, shipping and transportation of books otherwise. In fact, if you read his company's philosophy, you'll find a link to its green initiative and the slogan, "Saving the environment one book at a time." (For the record, you might notice the green-living suggestions listed on that page were compiled by a fellow CMCerone of several Claremont McKenna students who volunteered to help Black launch his site. You can find the others listed under "The Team page.")
CMCers have so far been using cash or checks for book purchases, and in some cases, have traded texts. In fact, a coming-soon component of the site will match students looking to trade certain titles, he says. Another goal is to add PayPal and Claremont Cash as payment systems.
What's more, Black is uniquely poised to take advantage of new federal legislation effective next year that will require college bookstores to disclose the list of books professors are using in their courses. It's a development that could massively accelerate his business and put Black, well, in the black.
"Having the ability to post class book-lists will benefit all students insofar as we can match students with an entire class set of books, versus students searching for titles one by one," Black says. "Students will also have the ability to buy their books during the summer and winter break before ever seeing the class syllabus."
"Daniel's timing with BookMatchers is uncanny," says Vice President of Student Affairs and Dean of Students Jeff Huang. "When Congress reauthorized the Higher Education Act last year, they required that college bookstores release the lists of books that professors are using so that students will have an opportunity for competitive buying. BookMatchers fits well into this legislative act."
The market is changing in other ways, too, notes Black, with Google trying to buy the electronic book rights, and Amazon launching the Kindle. "My company creates a foundation for students who want to continue using paper books rather than switching over to the electronic ones," he says. "We will be teaming up with publishers in order to make textbooks cheaper, and help them compete with the newly emerging electronic textbook market."
Black says the idea for an online book business serving CMC classmates came from his mother, who knew he was frustrated with the inefficiencies of buying and selling textbooks.
"I thought it was a great idea," Black says. "Understanding the potential scalability of the Web site, I decided to launch it nationwidein addition to Canada where it is launching this weekand open it to all middle schools, high schools, college campuses, and graduate schools."
The biggest hurdle was raising the necessary capital. "Raising money is always a challenge, but in the midst of a recession, the job became much more challenging" he says. "It was no easy process. I had to give short pitches, full-length presentations, and keep up to date on current events with regards to the textbook market in order to be better prepared.
"When all was said and done," he adds, "I was rejected by an investor who was on board from the beginning. Mentally it was a hard blow. I took two days off and then got back on the horse. I cut the fat' and continued my pursuit for funding. It would take until September to finally get the money in the bank."
In order to make his dot-com a success and remain a viable student with a respectable GPA, he lightened his course load this semester and relies on his Blackberry for multitasking. "I plan things out ahead of time and try to stay as organized as possible," he says. "I party less, and eat quicker meals to accommodate the influx of work I have."
Post-graduate plans for Black include participation in the Robert A. Day 4+1 BA/MBA program at The Peter F. Drucker and Masatoshi Ito Graduate School of Management. His hope is to become a venture capitalist focusing on the college entrepreneurial communitya community he believes has been undervalued for years.
In the meantime, Black says he has other companies and businesses "in the works.
"My education here at CMC does take precedence over my company the majority of the time," he admits, "but there are those times where company responsibilities outweigh those of school work. Simply put, I enjoy the challenge."

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