January 24, 2005 | View Comments (59) | Category: CSS Vault
Summary: I sold it.
I don't know if there is a right or wrong way to say this so I will just say it. The CSS Vault has been sold. I wasn't looking to sell it and in fact the Business Logs team was in the process of working on a redesign (as was mentioned many times before), but I was approached by an individual and he offered to buy it. We talked and negotiated and finally reached a price that was acceptable with both parties. It wasn't as easy as that, but after discussing it with many of my close web friends they all agreed that at the price offered they would do the same thing.
I could tell you the reasons for selling. I was getting too busy. Updating was no longer fun (and I had many people offer to volunteer, which still would've involved a lot of work on my side). I have other projects that I would like to get started on. And to be honest, the money involved is almost impossible to say no to.
Some have told me I risk selling my brand or that my brand will be tarnished. I would like to think that people have a better view of things. It's quite possible that I will never do anything as big as the Vault again (although FG gets 95% of the Vault's traffic), but that is the fun in all of this. I get another challenge to conquer. Another mountain to climb.
The individual buying the site has said that he would keep it maintained, otherwise there is no reason in buying it. I created the Vault over a year ago to help accelerate the adoption of CSS in the industry and to showcase great designs. I put a lot of time and effort to create one of most popular CSS sites on the web. I am proud of what I accomplished and I am proud to say I left my heart and soul in it.
It's time to move on.
I will continue with updates over the next week and please continue to submit to the site since it isn't dead or dying. Just getting a new home.
Oh and since I am sure many of you are curious as to how much it sold for, the only thing I can tell you is $XX,XXX.
Trackback URL: http://9rules.com/cgi-bin/mt/mt-tb.cgi/387
D'oh. Thats news.
I hope not to much will change, mainly the frequency of updates.
But I have to get used to that it isn't Scrivs CSS Vault anymore.
And it seems that you are now paid a good price for your important work inside the CSS-Community.
Eric (http://yatil.de/)
On an unrelated note Eric's comment was #7500. Didn't realize they got that high.
Scrivs (http://9rules.com/)
damn, xx,xxx nice! man.
Well, congrats man.
I wonder how much the criteria for submissions will change.
Bryan (http://www.juicedthoughts.com)
Congrats! That'll pay for a couple of months of WOW.
I'd probably think you were nuts not to sell, not the other way around.
Bill (http://bill.simonifamily.net)
Congratulations, Scrivs! By selling it off, do you mean you've relinquished full responsibility, or will you have any occasional input?
And I think you did the absolute right thing--it's best to be able to put your 110% in your projects, and once you found you weren't, you were able to find someone who would (and get a nice profit). It's always a good idea to keep anything you work on at the highest level of quality, and sometimes that means passing it on to someone else.
$xx,xxx doesn't sound too shabby, either. ;-)
Lea (http://www.lealea.net/)
I created the Vault over a year ago to help accelerate the adoption of CSS in the industry and to showcase great designs.
And you succeeded. Job very well done. Fair play to you. Nobody should criticise this move as I imagine nobody has experience of it. Money is way too important in this world.
And, let's give the buyer a chance. I imagine the Vault will continue to be important, so long as CSS is.
Go and get pissed now Scrivs...
Colly (http://www.collylogic.com)
Congrats Scrivs! Great to see new things moving forward for you, and old things closing so nicely ;-)
Mike P. (http://www.fiftyfoureleven.com/)
Haha, you said everything right for once Colly. Nothing to get pissed about :-P
Scrivs (http://9rules.com/)
Just thought I'd say hello to everyone. I am the new owner.
I'm just letting everyone know that if any changes do take place, they will be minor. I like the site the way it is and wouldn't want to destroy what scrivs has created. Any major changes that take place will be taken only after consulting the people who come to the site. I'm sure I'll be asking for your input in the future.
Jacob G.
Congratulations!! You're making history here, selling websites and all. While there have been other high-profile blogs sold, this is (a) quite a well known one, and (b) for a good sum!
Elliott Back (http://elliottback.com/wp/archives/2005/01/24/css-vault-sold-profit/)
I would really hate it if bad things were to happen to the Vault. It's been a really useful source of inspiration for me and for others, I'm sure.
While I feel a bit uncertain about the direction it's going to take, I guess I would have done the same thing as Scrivs, so I don't blame him ;)
Hoping for the best...
Lucian S. (http://www.badboy.ro)
Good for you! Was planning on submitting some stuff - and I still will. No reason for you to be anything but proud of what you created.
Biggest Apple (http://www.smallestphoto.com)
Slight cultural miscommunication there: when Colly encouraged you to get pissed, he wasn't telling you to get angry. He was telling you to get drunk. ;-)
Jeremy Keith (http://adactio.com/)
Scrivs: Jeremy is right, I meant "pissed" in the English sense - as in "go and get so drunk on your big pile of money that you can't get out of bed for five days and you puke in a bucket - all in the name of celebration".
That kind of pissed.
Hats off to you mate, you did the right thing. Without the Vault, my blog would never have picked up so quickly. Forever grateful.
Colly (http://www.collylogic.com)
Good on ya Scrivs! Honestly, I would have taken the $$ too.
John Serris (http://phonophunk.phreakin.com)
Heck, he did that before he sold it. heh.
Congrats, Scrivs, and also to Jacob.
And my, my, my... whatever will you come up with for your next project?
I mean, besides spending all your time playing World of Warcraft.
JC (http://forevergeek.com)
Wow, congrats on the sale. Hopefully the new owner will keep up the quality.
So I guess my question is: Do you want to create anything as big as the Vault again? Or would you rather have lots of smaller and lower profile sites getting you the same amount of money/traffic?
Vinnie Garcia (http://ibebloggin.com/)
Considering that (I think) even at it's lowest $XX,XXX.XX is more than I made in all of last year, that's quite nice :)
Good job Scrivs!
Joe Clay (http://www.gra-phix.com/)
Good question Vinnie. Honestly, as I mentioned in the entry, FG is almost at the same level as the Vault, but there is less stress involved with that site and it is more enjoyable writing for. I definitely think you need a mixture of a one or two big sites with a couple of low-profile ones to keep you interested.
At least that's the case for me as it is hard to stay focused on solely one thing.
Scrivs (http://9rules.com/)
Damn -- I just did a traffic rank comparison of my site, the Vault, and FG...
I get more traffic! $XXX,XXX.XX?!? :) Eh.. I could never sell.
Looks like FG is doing well this past month...
I guess you will be achieving your goals for 2005 ;)
Adam Michela (http://www.acurazine.com/)
Hmm, the only thing I think you did wrong was sell it for less than it's worth :)
Kyle (http://www.warpspire.com)
Congrats Scrivs. I hope the Vault quality and standards continue but I'm happy for you. No reason to keep doing something you don't find enjoyable anymore.
Plus, I'm pretty sure I'd sell my kidney for $XX,XXX, let alone one of my sites.
Brian (http://www.brianbehrend.com/)
Wow, so you mean I could have sold The Weekly Standards, and not just quit doing it and let it die?! Well then -- to the first bidder of a $25 iTunes gift certificate, TWS could be all yours :)
But seriously, I can certainly relate to the "no longer fun" part. I think it has something to do with the fact that you're not actually creating anything yourself -- just promoting other people's good works. After awhile, you get tired of promoting and want to get back to creating like you did when you first started. Vicious cycle I suppose. That is unless you quit and make a heap off the cycle.
And OK, you guys drive a hard bargain ... $20. Anybody?
B. Adam (http://www.weeklystandards.com)
Oops, old habit. Meant for my URL to be www.benjaminadam.com.
Editor? :)
B. Adam (http://www.benjaminadam.com)
Congratulations? I guess. You're one lucky man. The minimum you got is $10,000, and I certainly would take that for my site. Very impressive job. I wonder if a redesign is coming soon, the same one you were making?
Jeff (http://nokrev.com)
Scrvis,
I am a little disappointed you won't be the owner but, I think I can cope if it still around and the excellent design choices are continued to be made
But, I can understand...it was an offer you couldn't refuse...
Ian (http://www.iangordon.us)
^ LMAO :)
Good for you dude. Don't blow all the paper on booze though.:)
Egor (http://www.egor-k.com)
Congrats Scrivs, $XX,XXX would be nice. I hope the new guy doesn't mess up what you've started =)
Colin Cameron (http://www.colincameron.com)
I remember the days when all you had to do was register a domain name and sell it to get $XX,XXX...shame you actually have to build a site to make some money these days...
Seriously, congrats Scrivs! Sounds like a good deal for all involved.
nix (http://www.nixlog.com)
congrats! looking forward to whatever other projects you have up your sleeve.
lor (http://www.apparentlynothing.com)
Way to go man! Thats what I call a success story. I'm sure many people wish they could have done exactly what you just did, including myself. Good luck on your other endeavors!
Carlos Porto
Congrats, Paul!
$XX,XXX will go along way in the strip clubs.
Enjoy it. :)
Jeff Croft (http://jeffcroft.com)
I think that's an awesome move, man. The Vault legacy gets to continue, we get updates, and you get a nice chunk of change with the respect you deserve. It's a good deal for everyone.
I admit that this was the first CSS showcase site I ever visited and it's resources helped me to adopt standards fast. Your work will not be forgotten. And I thank you personally for everything you've done to furthur the community and standards as a whole.
David Lee Hemphill (http://www.homeofthedave.com)
Another plus -- with all these X's, you're likely to show up in porn search results now! Woohoo!
Jeff Croft (http://jeffcroft.com)
CSS Vault has been so much useful to a lot of people.
and at the end, it proved useful to the creator too :)
Good Work so far and thats what we expect from you everytime.
Sadish (http://simpleinside.com)
Congrats Paul! It's great to see that my biggest inspiration for standards compliant web sites has done good to it's creator too.
Although I'm a bit sad that you won't be driving the vault, I really hope it will be a tool for upcoming web designers to learn their craft as well as a wonderful resource to all of us.
Prabhath Sirisena (http://www.vesess.com)
I'd sell my site for two tacos and a burrito.
Congradulations Paul!
sergio (http://overcaffeinated.net)
I suppose I should echo "Congratulations", but really I think you're a Capitalist fat cat!
;)
Well done Scrivs
Malarkey (http://www.stuffandnonsense.co.uk)
Well done bro. I would have definitely done the same. Keep up the great work and good luck in your future endeavors!
Rob (http://www.couchfort.net)
Why would someone pay $XX,XXX for cssvault.com? Sounds pretty stupid to me. Reminds me of the old days when sites like CoolSiteOfTheDay were all the rage and sold for big money. Dumb. Just dumb.
Carl
Just a comment regarding my post above, i'm not saying cssvault.com isn't useful... I visit it regularly... however it isn't a site I could see paying $XX,XXX for.
Carl
Well, Carl, I don't know the specifics, but consider that a site like the CSSVault probably rakes in... what, 200/300 dlls. monthly on googleads alone?
According to alexa, its traffic on September was roughly on par with that of Ctrl-Alt-Del. Now, looking at the stats , the webcomic pulled roughly 1,782,291 unique visitors that month. That's a lot of traffic (this is highly inaccurate and I'm half pulling it out of my ass, of course).
Now, besides the googleads, there is opportunity for other capitalist ventures there. With a dedicated team, it could easily sprout a design community, with subscription based content and tie-ins, a la Sitepoint, sell more advertising space, serve as a "pull" for a web design firm (this one could pay for itself after two or three high profile jobs), etc.
The point is, I don't think it will stay the same, and I don't think the buyer (Jacob) means to keep it just at what it currently is.
sergio (http://overcaffeinated.net)
I'm gonna disagree with Sergio.
On one hand, why would you buy something and not start tweaking to your specs? I mean you did pay $xx,xxx for it so you might as well screw and jack, etc - right?
BUT on the other hand, apparently this site has had some success (I know it forced me over my bandwidth when I got features last month...) why would you mess it up? - especially if you spent that much money on it!
I'm kinda curious what will change, personally. I'm going to guess he throws up a message board and the number of times a week it's updated.. and that would be about it.
Jeff Clark (http://www.vacantcanvas.com)
congratz scrivs! you too Jacob, youve got some big shoes to fill!
heres to the future.
clint (http://clintfisherart.com)
Well I guess the business partner should've gotten the new design out faster...
Scrivs (http://9rules.com/)
Congratulations to both parties and keep up the excellent work !!!!
Thomas (http://www.markedupmedia.com)
F*ck me, now I understand why the logo's changed and why the footer does not mention 9rules anymore.
I just replied to the survey, and commented on the lines of 'Scrivs, what's this new logo? Oh I see, you're going to redo the entire network', etc.
I feel stupid now.
You walk away from the keyboard for a few days and then BAM. A site that you strongly associate with its owner is not his anymore. That sure feels weird.
And that's a bit sad, from my point of view. I agree with Carl. A personal (sort of) site is so much associated with its owner that I can't see change as a positive.
Except for your bank account, of course :)
... and for that I won't criticise. That's your life, pal.
That *does* feel strange nonetheless. I'm pretty sure I won't sell nota-bene.org soon...
Stephane Deschamps (nota-bene.org) (http://www.nota-bene.org/)
I also said something that now sounds silly in the comments of that survey. Oh well.
I thought that jumpbug was the new name for the 9rules network or something ... I was thoroughly confused at that point. :D
Good work - keep posting here and I'll keep reading.
tom (http://trhaynes.f2o.org)
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#1
Very proud of you. :)
Eris (http://www.erisfree.com)