Hockey Stick Growth Charts
Lending Tree Growth Chart
Tinkering/Pre-Start (Pre-1996)
- Doug Lebda works as an accountant for Pricewaterhouse after graduating from Bucknell in 1992
- 1996: Lebda becomes an expert on trading “basis” in the natural gas field
- Lebda ideates a new way for lenders and borrowers to exchange loans while at Pricewaterhouse
- Doug Lebda and Jamey Bennet both invest $1,500 to found Lewisburg Ventures
The Blade Years (1996-1999)
- Launches in 1996 as Bankwire; soon changes name to CreditSource USA
- 1996: Year 1 revenue = $0
- 1997: Lebda drops out of grad school at UVA where he was pursuing his MBA
- CreditSource becomes LendingTree and lands a $1 million investment
- 1998: LendingTree.com launches nationally and establishes its headquarters in Charlotte, N.C.
- 1998: Phoenix Insurance Group invests $3 million and Union Labor Life Insurance Company invests $7.5 million
- In early 1999, mortgage brokers become important to LendingTree’s success in a time when banks aren’t closing their leads
Growth Inflection Point (1999)
- Year 4 growth inflection point: $8,042,075 revenue (grows 1,587 percent from 1998)
- Launch “When banks compete, you win” campaign
- Late 1999: LendingTree spends time and money on lead-conversion rates with banks
- Experience growth inflection when both mortgage brokers and banks hit full stride in lead-conversion closing
- Spend $18.5 million on marketing this year
Surging Growth (2000-2003)
- 2000: LendingTree goes public
- 2000: Spend $56.6 million on marketing
- 2001: Launch “Stanley Johnson” campaign
- 2003: InterActiveCorp acquires LendingTree for $726 million
The Hockey Stick Principles: The 4 Key Stages to Entrepreneurial Success
For anyone toying with the idea of founding their own company or launching a new product, this accessible guide will teach you what to expect when you first start out—from the tinkering phase, to the blade years, the crucial growth inflection point, and onward to surging growth.
