Fab.com

E-commerce / design goodsUSA
New to Unitard
🀝 Acquired
PeakΒ $1 BillionToday
~-98%
from peak
  1. πŸ¦„
    Became a unicorn
    2013
  2. πŸ“ˆ
    Peak valuation
    $1 Billion ’13
  3. πŸ’”
    Became a Unitard
    2014
  4. πŸ’Έ
    Last valuation
    ~$20M
Current status
Sold to PCH International in a 2015 fire sale for ~$15M after burning through $300M+.

The rise & fall

5 moments Β· 2011–2015

The key moments.

2011
Launches as a flash-sale site for design goods
Under founder Jason Goldberg, Fab becomes one of the hottest e-commerce startups of its era.
TechCrunch
2013
The peak: $165M at a $1B valuation$1B
Part of roughly $335M raised in total for the design-goods darling.
TechCrunch
2013–14
Burning $12M a month
Costly pivots and international expansion chase growth, but a sustainable model never shows up.
TechCrunch
2014
Falls out of the club
Deep layoffs as the flash-sale model collapses and the money runs down.
TechCrunch
Mar 2015
Fire-sold to PCH for ~$15M$15M
About $335M raised, ~$15M recovered β€” a near-total wipeout and a defining cautionary tale of the early-2010s boom.
TechCrunch

How it happened

Fab.com launched in 2011 as a flash-sale site for design goods and quickly became one of the hottest e-commerce startups of its era, raising about $335M β€” including a round at a $1B valuation in 2013 β€” under founder Jason Goldberg.

But it burned roughly $12M a month, chased growth through costly pivots and international expansion, and never found a sustainable model. By 2015, after deep layoffs, Fab was sold to Irish manufacturer PCH International in a fire sale worth only about $15M, a near-total wipeout for its backers and a defining cautionary tale of the early-2010s startup boom.

Glassdoor reviews from the 2013-2014 flameout described chaotic management, long hours and churn as the company burned through its funding.

Employee accounts paraphrase anonymous, unverified reviews posted publicly on Glassdoor β†—. See our methodology.

Source: TechCrunch / SiliconANGLE / GeekWire ($165M round at ~$1B valuation 2013, raised ~$335M total; burned ~$12M/month; sold to PCH International ~$15M, March 2015)

Founders

  • Jason Goldberg
    Co-founder & CEO who led Fab.com to its $1B+ valuation and through its 2015 fire sale
    No public profile matched
  • Bradford Shellhammer
    co-founder & chief design officer (left 2013)
    Now Chief Marketing & Product Officer at 1stDibsLinkedIn β†—

Current roles as self-reported on LinkedIn, retrieved 2026-08-19. See our methodology.

Disclosed investors (24)

Historical funding participation; lists may be incomplete and do not establish current ownership or investor losses.

* Lead in a funding round Β· Crunchbase β†— Β· 2026-10-13 Β· Methodology Β· Leaderboard

More from the club

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