The Faire Mafia
Faire was founded in 2017 by Max Rhodes, Marcelo Cortes, Daniele Perito, and Jeff Kolovson to create an online marketplace connecting independent retailers with unique, high-quality products from artisans. The founders aimed to address the challenges of the traditional wholesale distribution model by leveraging data and technology to streamline buying and selling.
Under the leadership of CEO Max Rhodes, Faire has expanded significantly, now serving thousands of retailers and brands across North America and Europe. The platform’s innovative use of machine learning and AI helps retailers make informed purchasing decisions, making Faire a key player in the wholesale market and a strong supporter of small businesses.
The Faire Mafia
The Faire Mafia has founded 12 companies and raised $52M.
PS: Are you a Faire Tech Mafia member interested in bringing your community together to invest in innovative ventures (and enjoy potential profits and other perks along the way)? Or perhaps you're part of another dynamic group that could be a fantastic source of startup investments?
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List of all the amazing companies covered
Slash
Founder: Kevin Bai
Faire Role: Frontend Engineer
Capital Raised: $19M
Investors: Y Combinator
Stage: Series A
Slash is a financial technology company that offers deposits, payments, virtual cards, and expense tracking.
IYK
Founder: Ryan Ouyang
Faire Role: Engineering Intern
Capital Raised: $16.8M
Investors: a16z crypto
Stage: Seed
IYK is a platform for brands, musicians, and creators to deploy fully-customizable, digi-physical experiences at scale.
Plura (formerly Bloom Community)
Founder: Lauren (Luna) Ray Vegter
Faire Role: Product Lead
Capital Raised: $5M
Investors: Y Combinator
Stage: Seed
Bloom Community offers sex-positive, gay, and edge-of-culture communities a secure online environment.
Galileo AI
Founder: Arnaud Benard
Faire Role: Staff Machine Learning Engineer
Capital Raised: $4.8M
Investors: Khosla Ventures
Stage: Seed
Galileo AI creates delightful, editable UI designs from a simple text description. It empowers you to design faster than ever.
Tatem
Founder: Christopher LaFerla
Faire Role: Strategy & Finance
Capital Raised: $2.5M
Investors: Caffeinated Capital
Stage: Pre-Seed
Meet Tatem, the productivity company. We make intelligent software designed to get you through your work, faster.
Radom
Founder: Mariel Yonnadam
Faire Role: Frontend Developer
Capital Raised: $1.6M
Investors: NEAR Foundation
Stage: Non-equity Assistance
Radom is a suite of crypto APIs and no-code products that enable businesses to accept cryptocurrency payments from their customers.
Skyvern
Founder: Suchintan Singh
Faire Role: Manager, Machine Learning Infrastructure
Capital Raised: $500K
Investors: Y Combinator
Stage: Pre-Seed
Skyvern is an AI based Automate browser that helps with complex workflows using AI agents.
Demospace
Founder: Cole Cable
Faire Role: Operations
Capital Raised: $500K
Investors: Y Combinator
Stage: Pre-Seed
DEMOSPACE is a bespoke venue service offering you a unique and exclusive setting for your event.
Doosty
Founder: Puya Vahabi
Faire Role: Head of Search and Personalization
Capital Raised: $500K
Investors: Puya Vahabi
Stage: Angel
Doosty helps you automate your Order Management with AI (B2B SaaS)
Blacksmith
Founder: Aditya (JP) Jayaprakash
Faire Role: Software Engineer 2
Capital Raised: $500K
Investors: Y Combinator
Stage: Pre-Seed
Blacksmith is a company that helps businesses to conduct their continuous integration (CI) up to twice as quickly and at half the expense.
Retalent
Founder: Danny Gilliland
Faire Role: Head of Sales
Capital Raised: $320K
Investors: —
Stage: Angel
Retalent builds predictive hiring models to help companies and candidates find a better match.
Beeper
Founder: Brad Murray
Faire Role: Senior Engineering Manager
Capital Raised: —
Investors: Y Combinator
Stage: Seed
Beeper is fast. A single app to chat on iMessage, WhatsApp, and 13 other networks. You can search, snooze, or archive messages. And with a unified inbox, you’ll never miss a message again.
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