French discount aggregator Miwim gobbled up by US based WhaleShark Media

Miwim, a Vannes-based ­discount aggregrator for the French consumer market, has been acquired by US based WhaleShark Media for an undisclosed sum.
Miwim, a twenty-person company based in Vannes, is two years old. It operates under several brands, such as Bons-de-Reduction.com, Poulpeo.com, and super-comparateur.com. Miwim reportedly had 2 million euros in revenue in 2011.
Miwim was founded in 2009 by Olivier David and Francois Larvor. They provide several services under their different brands – discount coupon aggregation, e-commerce comparison engine, and a cashback aggregator. Olivier David has a background as an entrepreneur, having founded a marketing and e-commerce agency in 2003, after he finished his degree. Francois and he got together in 2007 to build Miwim and bootstrapped the company.

WhaleShark Media is an Austin, Texas based company. Founded in 2009, they are now 200 people strong, and have operations (mostly couponing sites like Miwim) in the US, Australia, UK, and Germany, so the expansion into France is a sensible next step. Their 2011 revenue was $80 million and they had 400 million visitors last year. Its business model differs from daily deal sites such as Groupon and Living Social, which offer steep discounts on local, once-a-day deals.
The company has frequently been mentioned as a candidate for an initial public offering this year, but CEO Cotter Cunningham said WhaleShark has no immediate plans.
After the acquisition, Miwim and its 20-person staff will continue to operate as an independent brand based in France.