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price
to be revealed the buyer, who
reportedly has a plan in place to
develop the domain, has chosen to
remain anonymous for now.
On
Monday morning Harbin, Clements and
Elsegood all agreed to participate
in a private conference call to
answer questions about the sale with
the proviso that the information
shared would be under embargo until
9am this morning.
(Left
to right) Brian Harbin (Grit
Brokerage), David Clements (Brannans.com)
and
Jackson Elsegood (Escrow.com)
were all involved in closing the $3.5
million sale of Ice.com.
Harbin
told me he first met the buyer when
that person bought a domain Harbin
had listed for $2,500. After buying
a few other domains through Harbin's
Grit Brokerage in the same price
range, this person wound up calling
on Harbin to sell a domain for him
but this one was a blockbuster - Ice.com.
Harbin had done some previous deals
with Clements and contacted him
about this exciting new
listing. Clements happened to have
an acquaintance he had met at a
private event in his hometown,
Atlanta, that he thought might have
an interest in the domain. When
Clements presented the opportunity
to obtain the domain the buyer
jumped on it, agreeing to the full $3.5
million asking price. Working
with Escrow.com it then took them
barely a week to complete the
transaction which happened on July
6.
Ice.com
had previously been developed as an
ecommerce platform to sell jewelry
products but it became apparent to
the owner that the name itself was
worth more than the business. While
the new owner has development plans
of his own he is not ready to reveal
what the domain will be used for.
Whatever that may be, Clements
believes the buyer now has the
strongest possible foundation to
build on. "For less than the cost of a single, 30-second Super Bowl
ad we were able to acquire a powerful, single-word domain name with significant long-term value for our
client. Major enterprises are recognizing the value and competitive advantages these premium domains deliver.”
With
respect to the seller Harbin
said, “I’m enthusiastic that my client was able to fully monetize the digital asset they’d developed over 19 years – realizing significant gains over the previous sale price. I’m grateful and humbled to be part of a deal that was a win-win-win
for everyone involved. And I’m honored to be a small part of the initiative to advance the domain industry by educating consumers on the value of digital assets.”
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