![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Mason, who controls 7.7 percent of the company, will almost certainly become a billionaire overnight. Once shares start trading, the company could be worth around $20 billion, according to projections. In early June, Groupon made a splash when it filed for its highly anticipated initial public offering, which aims to raise at least $750 million. It is now a multi-national corporation with 83 million subscribers worldwide and more than 7,000 employees. The deal-of-the-day start-up that Mason launched less than three years ago has certainly gone far. “If you don’t have those moments where you go too far, then you’re probably not going far enough,” he told a roomful of employees recently. Mason now admits that he “flew too close to the sun.” But, after a barrage of criticism, he apologized and ended Groupon’s relationship with the agency that had executed the ads. Mason originally defended the commercials, saying they were intended to raise awareness. Earlier this year, he offended viewers around the globe when Groupon ran a series of Super Bowl television ads poking fun at deforestation, whales, and the Free Tibet movement. Other times he ends up with his foot in his mouth. Sometimes Mason gets lucky and finds that he masterminded a killer joke. ![]() Finding out where-or if-they land is part of the fun. He’s the type of guy who comes up with wild ideas that often have no beginning or end, and then lets them rip. Two years ago, Mason wouldn’t have thought twice about giving the pony to Bloomberg-awkward moments be damned. “Judgment,” Mason said, winking and pointing to his head. Spice spent the duration of the mayor’s visit in a freight elevator. Worried that Spice would offend the mayor, he ordered somebody to hide the pony. Moments before Bloomberg arrived, one of Mason’s employees had Googled “horse” and “Mayor Bloomberg.” He discovered that the mayor’s daughter had recently been in a riding accident. Less than 20 minutes later I walked by the cafeteria and Spice was gone. It’s like telephone, the game-it comes out the other side a pony in the cafeteria.” “Really, I don’t know how it ended up this way. “I thought it would be funny to give it to somebody as busy as the mayor.” “I mean, it’s such a heavy thing to gift someone,” he said, laughing. He had originally planned to give the mayor a puppy, but decided that a pony would be even more memorable. ![]()
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