# Shilpa Shah

> Shilpa Shah is the co-founder and Chief Experience Officer of Cuyana, the San Francisco-based sustainable luxury fashion brand built around two words: fewer, better. A UC Berkeley-trained UX designer who spent a decade building interfaces for Disney, AT&T, and Sun Microsystems before pivoting to business school at 32 — pregnant during her first semester — Shah co-founded Cuyana in 2011 with Karla Gallardo. The company has grown into a cult-favorite direct-to-consumer brand with 7 retail locations, 150+ employees, celebrity fans including Jessica Alba and Ayesha Curry, and $30 million in Series C funding from H.I.G. Capital. At Cuyana, Shah is the architect of the customer experience, championing quality over quantity in an industry obsessed with the opposite.

- **Role:** Co-Founder & Chief Experience Officer at Cuyana
- **Organizations:** Cuyana, Colibri Collective
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** BA, Human Computer Interaction & Computer Science (Cognitive Science major, CS minor), University of California, Berkeley, MBA, UC Berkeley, Haas School of Business
- **Known for:** Co-founded Cuyana in 2011, pioneering the 'fewer, better' DTC luxury fashion model, Grew Cuyana to $21M+ annual revenue with 7 retail locations and 150+ employees, Secured $30M Series C from H.I.G. Capital in 2019

## Career timeline

- **2003** — Joined Walt Disney Parks and Resorts Online as junior interaction designer, reporting directly to VP Paul Yanover
- **2003-2010** — Worked across design roles at Disney, AT&T, Sun Microsystems, and Punchcut (Design Director), specializing in UI/UX and information architecture
- **c. 2010** — Enrolled in MBA program at UC Berkeley Haas at age 32, with a 2.5-year-old son; became pregnant during first semester
- **2011** — Met co-founder Karla Gallardo during business school; began building Cuyana concept
- **2011-2012** — Co-founded Cuyana while completing final MBA semester — managing a 4-month-old, a 3.5-year-old, and early-stage fundraising simultaneously
- **2012** — Cuyana officially launched; introduced the classic leather tote that became the brand's bestseller
- **2013** — Launched 'Fewer Better Things' brand platform — a breakthrough word-of-mouth moment that defined Cuyana's identity
- **2019** — Cuyana raised $30M Series C from H.I.G. Capital — largest fashion funding round of that period
- **2020** — Cuyana honored as Inc. Best in Business for maintaining mission integrity during the COVID-19 pandemic
- **2022** — Cuyana expanded to 7 retail locations with 150+ employees; 85% of staff are women
- **Present** — Continues as Co-Founder and CXO of Cuyana, overseeing brand experience, sustainability, and customer journey

## Achievements

- Co-founded Cuyana in 2011, pioneering the 'fewer, better' DTC luxury fashion model
- Grew Cuyana to $21M+ annual revenue with 7 retail locations and 150+ employees
- Secured $30M Series C from H.I.G. Capital in 2019
- Achieved 90% sell-through rate vs. industry average of 60-70%
- Honored by Inc. as Best in Business 2020
- Built one of the most recognized sustainable fashion brands with celebrity fans including Jessica Alba, Ayesha Curry, and Poorna Jagannathan
- Pioneered direct-to-consumer affordable luxury model in 2011 before it became mainstream
- Founding Member of the Colibri Collective
- Early career: one of the pioneering class of professional UI/UX designers in Silicon Valley

## Latest updates

- **2025-04** — Cuyana launched 'Made With Air,' described as the world's first true zero-impact collection, generating 130% increase in content interaction
- **2024** — Cuyana expanded international presence, backed by Series C funding from H.I.G. Capital
- **2022** — Cuyana operating 7 physical retail locations with 150+ employees, 85% of whom are women

## Links

- Website: https://cuyana.com
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/shilparshah
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/cuyana
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shilparshah/
- Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/cuyana.sf

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/shilpa-shah
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-05-22