# Max Rhodes

> Max Rhodes is co-founder and CEO of Faire, the online wholesale marketplace that connects independent retailers with makers and brands. A Square alumnus from Oklahoma who studied history at Yale, he turned a side hustle importing British umbrellas into a thesis about the messy economics of small-town retail - and built a company that crossed a $12B valuation while courting the very shopkeepers Amazon ignores.

- **Role:** Co-founder and CEO at Faire
- **Organizations:** Faire, Square (alum), Bain & Company (alum)
- **From:** Norman, Oklahoma, United States
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** B.A., History, Yale University, High school, Norman High School
- **Known for:** Co-founded and scaled Faire to a wholesale marketplace serving hundreds of thousands of independent retailers., Faire raised more than $1.6B in venture capital, with a peak valuation around $12.4B., Was first product manager on Square Capital, deploying over $1B in small-business loans.

## Career timeline

- **2009** — Graduates Yale with a history degree after playing on the soccer team.
- **2009** — Joins Bain & Company as a consultant (and Bain World Cup player).
- **2013** — Joins Square as a product manager; becomes first PM on Square Capital and Square Cash.
- **2016** — Imports the Blunt Umbrella to the U.S. as a side hustle; trade shows reveal the wholesale problem.
- **2017** — Co-founds Faire with Marcelo Cortes, Daniele Perito, and Jeff Kolovson; goes through Y Combinator.
- **2019** — Faire reaches $500M business inside 24 months; named to Sequoia portfolio company list.
- **2021** — Faire raises at a $12.4B valuation, becomes one of the most valuable private marketplaces.
- **2023** — Continues to grow international footprint; raises additional venture financing.
- **2026** — Reflects publicly on the near-miss of overgrowth in CNBC interview about course-correcting the company.

## Achievements

- Co-founded and scaled Faire to a wholesale marketplace serving hundreds of thousands of independent retailers.
- Faire raised more than $1.6B in venture capital, with a peak valuation around $12.4B.
- Was first product manager on Square Capital, deploying over $1B in small-business loans.
- Was first product manager on Square Cash, Square's only Top-50 ranked iOS app at the time.
- Featured on Masters of Scale, Y Combinator's CEO interview series, and Sequoia's Seven Questions.

## Latest updates

- **2026-03** — Spoke with CNBC about how Faire course-corrected after growing too quickly during the 2021 boom.
- **2025-02** — Published 'Building together in 2025' note on LinkedIn outlining the year's direction for Faire.

## Links

- Website: https://faire.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/max-rhodes
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/MaxRhodesOK
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/FaireWholesale/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/max-rhodes
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-05-30