Chrislands acquired by AbeBooks.com
Earlier today came the announcement that AbeBooks.com had acquired Chrislands. The co-founders of Chrislands, Lance Christen and Jaymes (aka Jim) Sorbel, had been at our offices in Victoria, BC, on Monday and Tuesday this week to conclude the agreement so I had a chance to spend time with them.
Based on the outskirts of Washington DC, Chrislands is a company that builds, hosts and maintains online bookstores. They’ve been in business since 2001 and currently host more than 1,000 online bookstores. Lance and Jim spotted an opportunity in the online bookselling market and have worked very hard to develop their business. They have an excellent reputation within the used bookselling community and lots of sellers appreciate their very personal customer support. AbeBooks was attracted to Chrislands because 1) they’re all about books and online bookselling 2) they’re successful 3) there is plenty of opportunity for growth.
Lance and Jim are going to continue to operate Chrislands as an independent business. They won’t be moving to Canada but AbeBooks is giving them access to our resources. Chrislands is already working closely with BookFinder.com - the book price comparison search engine bought by AbeBooks in 2005. I know Lance and Jim spent a lot of time mulling over the offer from AbeBooks, thinking about whether it was right for them. They also talked to the folks at BookFinder.com too. We’re glad to have them on board.
