# Jared Golden

> Jared Golden is a Chicago-based entrepreneur, investor and advisor who co-founded Leap with Amish Tolia and formerly served as its co-CEO. Their earlier ventures included Campus Threadz and Pear, acquired by CustomInk. Golden subsequently moved into a Leap board role and advisory work with technology companies.

- **Role:** Co-founder and Board Director at Leap; independent advisor
- **Organizations:** Leap, Pear (formerly Apparel Media Group), Campus Threadz, Brand Innovators Labs, Deutsche Bank
- **Education:** Finance concentration, Indiana University - Kelley School of Business
- **Known for:** Co-founded Pear, acquired by CustomInk in 2014., Co-founded Leap, which launched its first Koio store in Chicago in 2018., Helped build Leap during its early expansion; its reported network grew from 11 stores at the start of 2021 to 50 in February 2022.

## Career timeline

- **During university** — Met Amish Tolia at Kelley and began working together on Campus Threadz.
- **2007** — Graduated from Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business with a finance concentration.
- **After graduation** — Worked at Deutsche Bank’s Global Investment Bank in New York, including leveraged finance and real estate, gaming, lodging and leisure client groups.
- **2009** — Co-founded Apparel Media Group, subsequently known as Pear, with Amish Tolia and Gerry Hays.
- **2013** — Was co-founder and president of Pear when it ranked seventh in Brill Street’s Chicago-area Gen Y employer list.
- **2014** — Pear was acquired by CustomInk, as recorded in CustomInk’s corporate timeline.
- **2016** — Appeared on Bootstrapping in America to discuss Pear.
- **2018** — Co-founded Leap with Amish Tolia; its first store opened for Koio in Chicago. Leap announced $3 million in seed funding in November.
- **2022** — As co-CEO, discussed Leap’s operating platform on Omni Talk and its store-cluster approach with Retail Dive.
- **By March 2024** — Serving on Leap’s board and advising technology businesses after five years focused on founding and building Leap.

## Achievements

- Co-founded Pear, acquired by CustomInk in 2014.
- Co-founded Leap, which launched its first Koio store in Chicago in 2018.
- Helped build Leap during its early expansion; its reported network grew from 11 stores at the start of 2021 to 50 in February 2022.
- Co-led Pear when it ranked seventh in Brill Street’s Chicago-area Gen Y employer list in 2013.

## Latest updates

- **2025-11** — Company context: Leap, under CEO Amish Tolia, announced work with Simon and Shopify on Bombas’ physical expansion, including a new Austin location.
- **2025-01** — Company context: Leap announced $20 million in financing and more than 100 stores in 12 major U.S. markets; Tolia was identified as CEO.
- **2024-03** — Golden was featured in a Polsky Center founder event; the biography described his Leap board role and technology advisory work.

## Links

- Website: https://about.me/jagolden
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jaredgolden
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/jboogie_chi
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bunnygps/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jagolden

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