Spreets co-founder points to start-up passion after leaving Yahoo!7

Spreets co-founder Dean McEvoy has declared himself a “start-up guy”, after it was confirmed he and fellow co-founder Justus Hammer are leaving Yahoo!7, which acquired Spreets last year.

Launched in April 2010, Spreets initially received $2 million in funding from investor Klaus Hommels before being picked up by Pollenizer, which served as a launchpad for the business.

In January last year, Spreets was acquired by Yahoo!7 for $40 million, with Yahoo!7 chief executive Rohan Lund describing Spreets as a “market leader” in the group buying sector.

“At its core, Spreets is about leveraging insights to deliver the best local deals through an online social experience,” Lund said in a statement.

“The Spreets management team in Dean McEvoy and Justus Hammer come with strong expertise and experience in the Australian group buying market.”

However, it’s been confirmed McEvoy and Hammer will leave Spreets as it is integrated further under Yahoo!7, which has insisted their departure is “part of a planned management transition”.

Spreets will now be led by Yahoo!7 chief operating officer Stuart Sayers. McEvoy will leave the business in early June while Hammer will leave later in the month.

“We thank Dean and Justus for their work in helping to integrate Spreets into the Yahoo!7 business, and for their efforts in starting and growing Australia’s first group buying website,” Sayers told B&T.

Sayers said while the current market for group buying has been challenging, Yahoo!7 remains committed to the success of the Spreets business.

McEvoy told StartupSmart he and Hammer had “negotiated a time when we all sort of finished, and now is that time”.

While McEvoy is optimistic about the outlook for group buying in Australia, he says Spreets now requires a different skill set to his own in order to move forward.

“I think it’s exciting where group buying is at the moment… But Spreets also requires different skills to manage the company as it gets bigger,” he says.

“It’s the perfect time to be handing over to the Yahoo guys. I’m a start-up guy and that’s where I want to play,” he says.

“I plan on doing something around start-ups. There are a few things I’ve got going on at the moment – investing [in] and mentoring start-ups.”