Inside Overstock’s strategy shift from horizontal to vertical

There wasn’t some big lightbulb moment. And there was never a dramatic boardroom meeting where the future was determined ahead of time. Instead, Overstock’s strategy emerged gradually.

When Geoff Atkinson originally joined Overstock in 2005, they were a broad discount retailer that would sell you anything. By the time he left in 2011, they were squarely focused on Home & Garden. 

The reason behind this shift is a fascinating case study in how seemingly small details can have a huge impact: Overstock is a public company worth hundreds of millions of dollars, but their entire strategy turned on a discovery that SEO competition was a little weaker in Home & Garden than other categories.