Detroit, MI. December 8, 2006. Fisher Price’s new ELMO TMX (Tickle Me Extreme) is a hot toy for the 2006 holiday season. Supplies are limited, and would-be Santas are having a hard time locating the loveable red Muppet. Gonicofish.com is providing consumers with a daily list of stores where Elmo may be found, as well as the current prices offered by each outlet.
This is in keeping with Gonicofish’s consumer service orientation. The company is a central Internet site where consumers can find bargains offered by nearly 1,000 merchants.
“I love working with Fortune 500 retailers and quality boutiques to bring shoppers savings on line,” says Gina Bassman, founder and CEO. “My aim is to provide a fun and easy place for customers to ‘catch’ today’s latest deals, discounts, and coupon codes.”
Bassman developed her unique shopping resource as a result of her personal experience as a shopper. She visited several web pages that claimed to pull together bargains from a variety of companies. She realized, however, that consumers found it difficult to find their way around such sites. She, like other customers, often got lost in long, unorganized lists of promotions.
Thus, Bassman set out to provide a free resource that is convenient for visitors to navigate. Bassman created her own, easy-to-use web layout. Her online visitors can peruse her site by item, by merchant, or by selecting a specific product category. During the holidays, Bassman has added seven gift categories in addition to her usual eighteen.
Bassman’s site is attracting the attention of consumers, retailers, and the media. On Thanksgiving Day, bargain shopping expert Faye Prosser was featured in a spot on Raleigh, North Carolina’s Channel 17. Prosser chose to work through Gonicofish.com to demonstrate to viewers the ease of online coupon shopping.
Metro Detroit’s The Daily Oakland Press is also doing a feature on the company which will appear within the next two weeks. Bassman has been highlighted in national press releases in which she offered tips for teaching young children sound financial concepts, finding designer bargains online, and ways to make holiday shopping on the Internet easier.
Prior to founding Gonicofish.com, Bassman was Senior Financial Officer for the Detroit Lions. During eighteen years in the corporate finance arena, she acquired experience in mortgage banking, commercial real estate, retail, sports, and entertainment. She was also instrumental in the start-up of Detroit’s Ford Field.
Bassman represents the fifth member of her immediate family within four generations to found and run businesses. Her husband, Robert, owns his own accounting firm.
Bassman received her BBA from Walsh College of Accountancy and Business Administration in Troy, Michigan.
