Need2Buy

About Need2Buy

Need2Buy.com operated as a business-to-business online marketplace specifically targeting the global electronic components industry. The company was situated in Westlake Village, California, and aimed to create a comprehensive trading exchange for the procurement of electronic components, serving original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), contract electronics manufacturers, distributors, and component makers. The platform's revenue model was based on facilitating these transactions and later pivoted towards a subscription-based software model.

Founded during the dot-com boom, the company was led by Chairman and CEO Maury S. Friedman. To build an experienced leadership team, Need2Buy brought on executives with extensive backgrounds in the electronics distribution industry, such as William C. Cacciatore, who became the vice president of strategic alliances. In August 2000, Need2Buy announced a significant $43 million investment from a consortium of venture capital firms including Baker Capital, TMCT Ventures, and STAR Ventures, which was a substantial vote of confidence from the investment community at the time.

The platform offered several key features, including a "SuperCatalog" which allowed buyers to upload bills of materials (BOMs) to check component availability across multiple franchised distributors. It also provided a "Part Research Center," leveraging a database from i2 Technologies to give users access to technical information on electronic components. As the market environment shifted, Need2Buy began to change its strategy from a pure online marketplace to a software-solutions provider. This strategic pivot was solidified by the acquisition of supply chain vendor Efinity Inc. and the appointment of Nima Bakhtiary, who had a background in software development, as president. The company's goal was to offer a hosted software environment for services like design review, sourcing, and inventory management, reflecting a move toward a more resilient enterprise software model. The firm also expanded its global footprint through the acquisition of the German component trading company Ultimate Electronics GmbH and partnerships in Asia.