TakeLessons

TakeLessons
Private
Industry Online Marketplace
Founded San Diego, California (2006)
Key people
 Steven Cox (CEO, Co-Founder), Alan Cole (Chief Operating Officer), Chris Waldron (VP, Customer Experience), Karen Baumbach (VP, Finance), Chris Bohnert (VP, Product)
Services Music and vocal instruction, academic tutors, art, dance and acting teachers, foreign language instructors and pet training
Website takelessons.com

TakeLessons is an American venture-backed startup that connects students with pre-screened music teachers, academic tutors, dance, acting, and foreign language instructors locally and online. The company is headquartered in San Diego, California. It has teachers operating in over 2,800 cities in the U.S.

History

In 2004, TakeLessons CEO Steven Cox was singing and playing guitar in the alt-rock band Across the Room with bassist Scotty B. and drummer Enrique Platas.[1] The idea for TakeLessons came about when Platas announced that he was quitting the band in order to accept a job as a cook at Chili's, because he was having a child and was in need of a more steady income than he was making from music, and Cox wanted to find a way to allow Platas to use the internet to find steady work as a drum instructor.[2] In 2006, TakeLessons was launched to connect music and voice instructors with students.[3][4] Since its launch, the San Diego-based company has expanded across the country with private instructors in more than 2,800 cities.[5]

In 2009, TakeLessons partnered with Costco.com to sell gift certificates for music and voice lessons.[6] In 2010, they entered into a partnership with Best Buy to sell and teach lessons in Best Buy stores.[7] In 2011, the company was awarded $6 million in venture capital from Crosslink Capital.[8] In 2013, the company received $4 million in venture capital to expand the services the company offered.[9] In October 2013, they expanded the range of their services offered, adding academic tutors, foreign language instructors, and additional performing arts teachers in dance and acting.[10][11] As of October 2013, TakeLessons had raised $12 million in capital.[12]

The company was an early provider in Google Helpouts while the site was in invite-only status, with TakeLessons inviting a select number of instructors to offer live video instruction in music, acting and tutoring.[13][14] As part of the launch, the company gave away a free 30-minute guitar lesson with guitarist David Kennedy of Angels & Airwaves.[15]

Founder and CEO

Steven Cox was raised with music from an early age, singing and playing bass in a gospel band with his parents and three brothers.[16] He graduated with dual degrees in Finance and Human Communications from Eastern Kentucky University, paying his way through school by working as a DJ.[17][18] Following his graduation, Cox worked in pharmaceutical sales.[19] He was a founding employee and the national business development director for PurchasePro.com (PPRO), a business-to-business e-commerce platform that initiated B-2-B commerce between educational institutions, governmental agencies, and their suppliers.[20] Following PPRO, Cox served as the vice president of strategic development for CollegeClub.com, which was at the time the 44th largest site on the internet.[21] An early social network, CollegeClub.com allowed users to sign up for free, create profiles, communicate and post pictures.[22] Prior to founding TakeLessons, Cox served as the managing partner of Reddito Partners, a privately held management consulting firm that specialized in web management strategy, web operations, e-commerce, and business development for clients including Cisco, Club Med, and Brian Tracy International.[23]

Recognition and awards

In 2008, the company was named a Killer Startup by KillerStartups.com.[24] In 2011, it was recognized as one of the best places to work in San Diego.[25] In 2013, the San Diego Business Journal ranked TakeLessons ninth on their annual list of the fastest-growing private companies in the county.[26] The same year, the company was ranked 214 on Deloitte's Technology Fast 500, named the second fastest-growing Internet company in the San Diego area.[27]

References

  1. ↑ "SoundClick artist: Across The Room - Disturbed, but Hopeful". Soundclick.com. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
  2. ↑ 0.00 (2013-05-24). "Steven Cox Interview on MarketPulse - ESPN Radio by Steven-Cox on SoundCloud - Hear the world's sounds". Soundcloud.com. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
  3. ↑ Catherine Clifford; staff reporter (2010-02-03). "Reversing the jobs wipeout: What $5,000 can do - Feb. 3, 2010". Money.cnn.com. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
  4. ↑ 2 a.m. (2009-05-17). "Survival mode Page 1 of 3". UTSanDiego.com. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
  5. ↑ "Local Music Site TakeLessons Gets $6M from Crosslink Capital". San Diego Reader. 2011-08-09. Retrieved 2014-01-27.
  6. ↑ "Industry Statistics - Costco.com offering the gift of music – lessons". Internet Retailer. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
  7. ↑ "A pretty tune for local music site TakeLessons: $6M from Crosslink Capital". VentureBeat. Retrieved 2013-10-09.
  8. ↑ "A pretty tune for local music site TakeLessons: $6M from Crosslink Capital". VentureBeat. Retrieved 2013-10-08.
  9. ↑ Thursday, January 31st, 2013 (2013-01-31). "Music Lessons Marketplace TakeLessons Grabs $4M From Pinterest Exec, SoftTech & Others To Expand Into New Verticals". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
  10. ↑ "TakeLessons aims to take its e-commerce platform to a new level". UTSanDiego.com. 2013-10-25. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
  11. ↑ Dani Fankhauser2013-10-11 01:32:09 UTC (2013-10-11). "Take Lessons Adds New Categories for In-Person or Online Learning". Mashable.com. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
  12. ↑ "TakeLessons aims to take its e-commerce platform to a new level | UTSanDiego.com Mobile". M.utsandiego.com. 2013-10-25. Retrieved 2014-01-27.
  13. ↑ "TakeLessons Launches On Google Helpouts". socalTECH.com. 2013-11-06. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
  14. ↑ "Video - Google Helpouts: Need Help With Your Shakespeare? - WSJ.com". Live.wsj.com. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
  15. ↑ "TakeLessons Offers Guitar Lesson With Angels & Airwaves' David Kennedy @ARTISTdirect". Artistdirect.com. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
  16. ↑ "The Brian Britt Show". The Brian Britt Show. 2012-11-08. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
  17. ↑ "San Diego Hosted Steven Cox (TakeLessons.com)". Startup Grind. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
  18. ↑ "Empowering Music Teachers With TakeLessons' Online Marketplace". socalTECH.com. 2013-04-11. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
  19. ↑ Steven Cox (2013-05-23). "Entrepreneur Interview on MarketPulse - ESPN Radio". Steven Cox. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
  20. ↑ "Startup San Diego Launch Event" (PDF). Startup California Partnership. June 9, 2012. Retrieved 2013-09-11.
  21. ↑ "Steven Cox | CrunchBase Profile". Crunchbase.com. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
  22. ↑ "What Happened to CollegeClub.com?". Erichstauffer.com. 2009-09-12. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
  23. ↑ "Startup Grind San Diego Hosts Steven Cox". Eventbrite. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
  24. ↑ "TakeLessons.com - Find Instructors for Anything | Visit takelessons.com". Killerstartups.com. 2008-03-14. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
  25. ↑ "How Steven Cox built the TakeLessons culture | Jhana Education". Blog.jhanaeducation.com. 2013-01-19. Retrieved 2014-01-06.
  26. ↑ "San Diego Business Journal's 100 Fastest Growing Private Companies" (PDF). San Diego Business Journal. July 15, 2013. Retrieved 2013-09-11.
  27. ↑ "Technology Fast 500™ 2013 Ranking" (PDF). Deloitte. November 7, 2013. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
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