More Web sites to offer comparison shopping for trips, tickets and more

Move over, Priceline negotiator.

TripFit.com, which launched this week, lets consumers take control of several travel Web sites at one time to search for the best price.

Despite the number of travel deals already at Priceline, Orbitz, Travelocity and others, the new TripFit uses comparison shopping as the future of online booking. You type in your travel plans and it will bring up similar trips and prices from the other travel sites. It also lets you book a trip offered through TripFit or any of the others, whichever fits your budget.

"In a down economy, people are looking to save money," said site founder Scott Kluth.

He founded CouponCabin.com about six years ago in Hoffman Estates and the site still offers deals and tie-ins to all the newest sites he has launched.

The company moved earlier this year to Chicago and has been expanding its staff. Last year, it had about a dozen workers. Now, it has 46 with another five expected to be hired in coming months.

The staff expansion will be needed as Kluth launches more consumer Web sites and gears up for the holiday shopping season.

Besides TripFit.com, Kluth this week launched LuxGoddess.com, which also uses comparison shopping with about 50 stores. If you're interested in a specific designer dress, you could tell LuxGoddess your specifics and it likely will call up similar sales of that item from Neiman Marcus, Bloomingdale's and Nordstrom's.

"It does all the leg work for you," said Kluth.

In about three weeks, SeatCity.com is expected to launch, so you can buy the best seat at any sporting or entertainment event. It draws on comparison shopping with other Web sites, including StubHub, TicketsNow and TicketsNetwork.

"We offer a unique place to pull all of that data together," Kluth said.

Surfing: As the nation celebrated the 40th anniversary this week of the first men on the moon, Motorola Inc. also marked its own celebration. The Schaumburg company provided the radio technology that allowed astronaut Neil Armnstrong to transmit his famous words when he first walked on the moon.

Also, Itasca-based NEC Display Solutions of America said it had provided about a dozen 46-inch ultra-narrow displays for the massive interactive video wall at the Adler Planetarium's Shoot for the Moon exhibit.

•Arlington Heights-based Restaurant.com, which has about 11,000 restaurants nationwide, said it has launched a new marketing program for chains to help increase business. So far Ted's Montana Grill, Madalay Bay Hotel & Casino and others are participating.