• May 13, 2010

Men's lifestyle eblaster and digital publication Thrillist has acquired JackThreads, a member's-only retailer of men's apparel. JackThreads is similar to Gilt Groupe, offering items from designers such as Mishka, ALIFE, WeSC at deep discounts in limited "flash" sales.

Access to Thrillist's subscribers means a potential 1.8 million new customers for JackThreads, which was founded in July 2008. And Jack, of course, gives Thrillist -- already viewed by its readers as a tastemaker -- another revenue stream.

To avoid any confusion or potential conflict, Thrillist founder Ben Lerer says the brands will be kept separate. Whenever something from JackThreads is promoted on Thrillist, it will be clearly labeled as a promotion, he says. "Just like ads for third parties, we'll label JT stuff as sponsored," he says, while pointing out that curating sales selection is a logical extension of the Thrillist brand. "That being said," he says, "we'll monitor this incredibly closely, because if we don't have credibility, we don't have anything." --John Capone