# Chad Hetherington

> Chad Hetherington is an Australian-born entrepreneur based in Minneapolis, founder and CEO of Third and co-founder and founding CEO of The Stable. His career runs from Logic Films in Adelaide through sales leadership at Quirky to building a commerce agency acquired by Accenture in 2022. He left The Stable and Accenture in December 2025; in March 2026, he launched Third by combining Orca and Sapphire Studios to serve emerging social commerce channels.

- **Role:** Founder and CEO at Third
- **Organizations:** Third, The Stable, Part of Accenture Song (co-founder; former CEO), Accenture (former managing director), Quirky (former sales and business development leader), Logic Films (co-founder), The Barn (co-founder)
- **From:** Adelaide, Australia
- **Nationality:** Australian
- **Education:** Findon High School
- **Known for:** Built The Stable from a 2015 startup into an agency acquired by Accenture in 2022., The Stable ranked No. 229 on the 2021 Inc. 5000 and No. 329 in 2022., Included in the Twin Cities Business TCB 100 for 2021.

## Career timeline

- **2004** — Co-founded Logic Films in Adelaide.
- **2005** — Received an Australian Young Achiever Award for Career Achievement, according to his Business Journals biography.
- **2007** — Moved to the United States and entered the consumer products industry.
- **2010-2015** — Led sales and business development at Quirky.
- **2015** — Co-founded The Stable in Minneapolis with Nik Larsen.
- **2017** — The Stable expanded to Seattle and raised outside capital.
- **2020** — The Stable merged with Kreative and secured Growth Catalyst Partners investment; it also acquired RichContext and Jacobs Marketing that year.
- **2021** — The Stable acquired BVA and Zehner and ranked No. 229 on the Inc. 5000.
- **2022** — Accenture acquired The Stable; Hetherington continued within the combined organization.
- **2025-12** — Departed The Stable and Accenture.
- **2026-03** — Launched Third through the combination of Orca and Sapphire Studios, with Growth Catalyst Partners backing.
- **2026** — Named a Campaign US 40 Over 40 honoree as Third’s founder and CEO.

## Achievements

- Built The Stable from a 2015 startup into an agency acquired by Accenture in 2022.
- The Stable ranked No. 229 on the 2021 Inc. 5000 and No. 329 in 2022.
- Included in the Twin Cities Business TCB 100 for 2021.
- Recognized as a 2026 Campaign US 40 Over 40 honoree.
- Helped build Quirky’s retail distribution to 50,000 stores over five years, according to his SKU biography.
- Inspired The Stable’s paid executive apprenticeship for people who did not attend college.

## Latest updates

- **2026-09** — Listed among the 2026 Campaign US 40 Over 40 honorees; the awards event was scheduled for September 24, 2026.
- **2026-05** — Discussed Third’s social commerce approach in a Net Influencer interview published May 11.
- **2026-03** — Orca and Sapphire Studios announced their combination into Third on March 26, with Hetherington as CEO.
- **2025-12** — Left The Stable and Accenture after the 2022 acquisition.

## Links

- Website: https://about.me/chadhetherington
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chadhetherington/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/chad-hetherington
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-23