Gift Card Granny (or GiftCardGranny.com) is an online discount gift card retailer and comparison site based near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.[1][2] The website allows consumers to search through numerous gift card websites and either purchase gift cards for a discounted price or sell them for below face value.[3][4] The website contains over 100,000 gift cards from more than 1,000 different stores.[5]

Gift Card Granny
Company typePrivate
Founded2009
FounderLuke Knowles
Headquarters,
Area served
United States
Key people
Jason Wolfe (CEO)
ProductsDiscount gift cards
Websitewww.giftcardgranny.com

History

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Gift Card Granny was founded by Luke Knowles in Fort Collins, Colorado in 2009.[6][7] It was a part of several sites that Knowles had founded that were collectively called "The Frugals," (Coupon Sherpa and Free Shipping Day were two others). At the time, it was the first gift card comparison site.[7] For most of the website's early years, Gift Card Granny was run solely by Luke Knowles.[2]

Acquisition

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In 2013, the website was acquired by internet entrepreneur and founder of GiftCards.com, Jason Wolfe, and his company, Wolfe.com. After GiftCards.com was acquired in early 2016 by Blackhawk Network Holdings, Wolfe became Gift Card Granny's CEO. In December 2016, Wolfe moved the company to Green Tree, Pennsylvania (a Pittsburgh suburb) to the same facility that had earlier housed GiftCards.com. The company currently employs 39 people.[2][8]

Operation

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Gift Card Granny is a gift card website that serves as a listing aggregator for discounted gift cards.[4][9] It partners with a variety of discount gift card companies and merchants.[3][10][11] Users can search for specific gift cards from specific stores and will be presented with discounted prices from Gift Card Granny partners. Users can then choose which gift card they'd like to purchase and will be redirected to a partner website to complete the purchase.[12]

Consumers can also look for gift card companies to sell their gift cards to on Gift Card Granny. Gift cards can be sold for below face value.[12][13] Gift Card Granny lists gift cards from over 1,000 different stores including Walmart, Olive Garden, Starbucks, Home Depot, Target, Macy's, and numerous others.[1][12] In total, there are over 100,000 gift cards listed on the website.

References

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  1. ^ a b Nuzum, Lydia (28 December 2016). "Five things to know for Wednesday, Dec. 28". Pittsburgh Business Times. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
  2. ^ a b c "Business briefs: Good results for O'Hara firm's concussion-testing device". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. 16 December 2016. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
  3. ^ a b Lamagna, Maria (31 December 2015). "Gift cards with the most resale value". MarketWatch. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
  4. ^ a b Sabatini, Patricia (4 April 2016). "Unused gift cards? Consumers increasingly buying and selling them online". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
  5. ^ Newsham, Jack (5 February 2015). "Not sure what to do with that gift card? Now, you can sell it". The Boston Globe. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
  6. ^ Tam, Donna (25 December 2014). "Trading in a gift card: Naughty or nice?". CNET. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
  7. ^ a b "Luke Knowles – Founder of Coupon Sherpa". Idea Mensch. 31 March 2016. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
  8. ^ "Gift Card Granny Moves into Green Tree Building as Pittsburgh's Newest Startup". Computer User. 17 December 2016. Archived from the original on 27 February 2018. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
  9. ^ Bondar, Mel (28 April 2015). "How Gift Card Swapping Sites Can Help You Splurge". U.S. News & World Report. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
  10. ^ Harris, Marlys (14 December 2010). "How to Get Discount Gift Cards". CBS News. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
  11. ^ "Cultural gift certificate and Google gift card recharge". Retrieved 2024-09-02.
  12. ^ a b c Delano, Jon (7 January 2013). "Website Turning Unwanted Gift Cards Into Cash". KDKA-TV. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
  13. ^ O'Shea, Bev (19 January 2017). "How to dig out from December's debt". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2 February 2017.
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