In the past couple of years, there's been a frenzy of flash-sales site launches and now they are buying each other out or partnering with one another.
Voyage Privé, a flash sales site specializing in travel, this summer is slated to begin powering a co-branded travel channel for ideeli, a flash sales shopping site.
This would sort of be like Kayak powering a co-branded travel section for Nextag.
Last fall, HauteLook bought BonVoyou to jump-start a travel offering.
Although ideeli already has a travel tab, the flash-on-flash-sales partnership isn't totally surprising since travel is Voyage Privé's bread and butter, so to speak.
The ideeli-Voyage Privé is an exclusive one. ideeli will use Voyage Privé' exclusively for ideeli's travel channel and Voyage Privé agrees not to have any other flash-sales partners in the U.S.
Flash sales are basically limited-time sales. ideeli's travel sales today generally last around five days.
The upscale travel channel in the making on ideeli will feature limited-time sales of hotels and travel packages to global destinations, the company says.
ideeli claims to have 4 million members who scour the site for men's, women's and children's fashions as well as home decore and travel.
Voyage Privé says its roster stands at 6 million members, who visit sites in the U.S., the U.K., France, Italy and Spain.
ideeli had launched its own travel offering in September 2010 by importing a couple of travel industry veterans, but apparently decided to overhaul the offering through a Voyage Privé partnership.
"The travel category has seen incredible growth on the site and this partnership will take the channel to the next level by offering even more and better travel offerings and services," a spokeswoman for ideeli says. "ideeli's travel director, Peter Manice, and his team will be working closely with Voyage Privé."