Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg surprised all recently when he signed up as a verified account member of The Fancy website under the name of 'zuckd.'
Facebook has not yet confirmed whether or not it's the real Mark Zuckerberg, although it is a verified Fancy account. Till now, around 114,530 different Fancy users are following Zuckerberg's account.
TheFancy.com is a photo sharing startup that competes with Pinterest, one of the fastest growing social networks online bookmarking site, where users collect and share photos of their favorite events, interests and hobbies.
According to Mashable's survey, Pinterest is the third-largest network after Facebook and Twitter. The start-up recently closed a $120 million round of funding and is looking to expand into overseas markets such as France, Germany and Japan.
Why did Zuckd Join Fancy?
It may be just a reason that Zuckerberg is interested in finding some gift ideas for his new bride, as the newly married man has fancied one item on the site and it is an Extendo Library Shelving System.
However, the signup also points to a few facts that Facebook founder could be prepping in his mind a potential interest towards the website.
As The Fancy has been growing really quickly, bringing the self-expression and social discovery of Pinterest together with the commerce component of Amazon. It allows retailers and merchants to see, what people are fancying and allows them to sell those products directly through the site.
According to Fast Company reports, The Fancy has nearly one million users, rapper Kanye West's approval and a $100 million valuation. Mashable reports have also informed that The Fancy has a solid group of investors, including Ashton Kutcher and MTV founder Bob Pittman. PPR has also invested in the company, adding the tech startup to a list that includes Gucci, Puma, Bottega and others.
The Fancy, unlike Pinterest, has already established a solid revenue stream. In fact, it allows users to conduct transactions directly on its site, having recently switched from a system that allowed users to purchase items on a third-party site.
Zuckerberg, who has been in the news due to Facebook's less-than-successful IPO, may have an interest in the New York-based startup that goes beyond his fondness for the Extendo Library Shelving System (the only item he has fancied).
Talking about Mark Zuckerberg's past records, the last time that the social media billionaire developed an interest towards a startup was Instagram, which is acquired in $1 billion. Facebook bought the photo-sharing app in April for a mix of cash and stock. Consecutively, Zuckerberg also moved Instagram's nine-person staff over to Facebook.
If he intends to buy The Fancy, there is a good chance that no one will know about it until the last minute. As he continues to look for ways to keep shareholders happy and expand Facebook's revenue stream, the billionaire may be in the market for a new startup. It is worth noting that The Fancy investor Jack Dorsey also backed Instagram.
Meanwhile, on Zuckerberg joining The Fancy, founder Joe Einhorn was reportedly noted informing that he had no information as to why Zuckerberg joined the site but said it's a "thrilling" development.
"It's a great way to share a side of you that people don't always get to see-the stuff we spend money on, the stuff we put in our house or clothes we put on. I bet our users would get a kick out of knowing that he fancies something they found," Forbes quoted Einhorn as saying.
