Good morning. Lauren Cooks Levitan first joined the unicorn Faire as its inaugural CFO and then was promoted to president. After six years at the company, Levitan is stepping down from her executive operator role to join Faire’s board of directors, effective July 1. She’s launching a startup where she’ll serve as CEO.
“We built a really durable business that I’m extremely proud of,” she told me about her executive tenure at the online wholesale marketplace. She played a pivotal role in Faire’s evolution from a newcomer startup to a global platform, raising more than $1 billion from top investors. But she’ll continue to be a part of Faire’s story as a board member.
Based in San Francisco, Faire connects hundreds of thousands of independent local retailers with global brands across categories such as food and beverages, apparel, home goods, and jewelry, according to the company. Chef David Chang’s popular specialty food brand Momofuku Goods is among the brands. Led by CEO and cofounder Max Rhodes, the company was launched in 2017, backed by investors such as Sequoia Capital, Forerunner, and Founders Fund. As of late 2024, Faire is valued at $5 billion, according to reports.
From CFO to president to founder and CEOLevitan joined Faire as its first CFO in 2019 and was promoted to president in 2024, a move that reflects
a growing trend for finance chiefs. “Even
as a CFO, I always saw my role as being a strategic thought partner to the leadership team and to the business,” she said.
There have been two common threads in Levitan’s professional life—a passion for consumer, retail, and e-commerce businesses—and supporting and helping scale up “the most interesting founder-led businesses,” she explained.
Levitan will channel her entrepreneurial energy into a new venture, cofounding and serving as CEO of a company called Root, which aims to innovate in building consumer businesses. “We expect that we’ll be able to announce more about it this summer,” she said.
I asked her why she thought it was the right time to move from an executive at Faire to a board member and focus on her own venture. The transition comes at a natural time for her, Levitan said.
“Our leadership team has matured along with the rapid growth of the business, and it’s really well positioned,” she said. Rather than naming a new president, Levitan’s former responsibilities will be shared among other leaders.
Lauren Cooks Levitan, president of Faire.Courtesy of FaireFrom a personal perspective, she is excited to pursue her own interests. “I think it’s an interesting moment in time to be building a business,” she said. She added that times of disruption are ideal for launching new ventures, as they present unique opportunities in today’s volatile and fast-changing business landscape.
Levitan pointed out another critical factor from her CFO background that will serve her going forward is “ruthless prioritization.” That includes capital-allocation decisions, how you spend your time and direct the team, and what businesses to pursue, she explained.
“I feel like transitioning into the cofounder and CEO role is leveraging all of those experiences that I built around ruthless prioritization as a growth company CFO for the better part of a decade,” she said.
Levitan began her career on Wall Street as an equity capital markets analyst at Goldman Sachs. She has more than 30 years of experience in retail. She joined Faire from a CFO role at Fanatics, a licensed sports merchandise provider. Earlier in her career, she cofounded Moxie Capital, a private equity firm. She also is currently a lead independent director on the board of e.l.f. Beauty.
Levitan shared advice that she still finds relevant, even later in her career—“Focus on continuously building skills and building relationships.”
Have a good weekend. See you on Monday.
Sheryl Estradasheryl.estrada@fortune.com 