Bradford Shane Shellhammer (born 1976) is an American entrepreneur, designer, and tech executive who co-founded the

e-commerce E-commerce (electronic commerce) refers to commercial activities including the electronic buying or selling products and services which are conducted on online platforms or over the Internet. E-commerce draws on technologies such as mobile co ...

companies

Fab Fab or FAB may refer to: Commerce * Fab (brand), a frozen confectionery * Fab (website), an e-commerce design web site * Fab, a digital asset marketplace by Epic Games * The FAB Awards, a food and beverage award * FAB Link, a European electricity ...

and Bezar and the blog

Queerty ''Queerty'' is an online magazine and newspaper covering gay- and LGBTQ-oriented entertainment and news, founded in 2005 by David Hauslaib. As of June 2015, the site had more than five million monthly unique visitors. History ''Queerty'' was ...

. Shellhammer was an admissions counselor at Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising Museum and part-time fashion and nightlife blogger who became a writer for ''JC Report'', '' A&F Quarterly'', and ''

Gay.com Gay.com was a chat, personals, and social networking website catering to the LGBT community. The site was a digital brand of Here Media Inc. In addition to community features, the site featured LGBT-related news and features. As of September 20 ...

'' before becoming the founding editor of ''

''. In 2016 Shellhammer served as

eBay eBay Inc. ( , often stylized as ebay) is an American multinational e-commerce company based in San Jose, California, that allows users to buy or view items via retail sales through online marketplaces and websites in 190 markets worldwide. ...

's Chief Curator and later went one to become Vice President of Buyer Experience and the Chief Product Officer of

Reverb.com Reverb.com is an online marketplace for new, used, and vintage musical equipment, including instruments used by notable musicians. It was founded in 2013 by David Kalt, and roughly 85 percent of its employees are musicians. As of 2016, Rev ...

, a subsidiary of

Etsy Etsy, Inc. is an American e-commerce company with an emphasis on the selling of handmade or vintage items and craft supplies. These items fall under a wide range of categories, including jewelry, bags, clothing, home decor, religious items, furni ...

. He is currently Chief Marketing & Product Officer of Rent the Runway.

Early life and education

Shellhammer was born in 1976 to Peg Kendall of

Pasadena Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, United States, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial d ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

, and Richard L. Shellhamer of

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

. He attended high school in

Anne Arundel County Anne Arundel County (; ), also notated as AA or A.A. County, is located in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 United States census, its population was 588,261, an increase of just under 10% since 2010. Its county seat is Annapolis, wh ...

and went on to study at

Goucher College Goucher College ( ') is a Private university, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Towson, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1885 as a Nonsectarian, nonsecterian Women's colleges in the United States, ...

Towson, Maryland Towson () is an unincorporated community and a census-designated place in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States. The population was 59,533 in the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Baltimore County and the second-most populous unincorpo ...

, where he earned a bachelor's in communications and media studies in 1998. Later, Shellhammer received an associate degree in fashion design from

Parsons School of Design The Parsons School of Design is a private art and design college under The New School located in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of New York City. Founded in 1896 after a group of progressive artists broke away from established Manhattan art ...

Early career

In 1999, Shellhammer met

Jason Goldberg Jason Goldberg (born 1972) is an American film and television producer. Goldberg is the producer of the films '' Guess Who'' and ''The Butterfly Effect'' and executive producer of the shows '' Beauty and the Geek'' and ''Punk'd''. He often wor ...

, with whom he would later become business partners, at Roxy NYC. Goldberg offered him the opportunity to be his assistant at his company in

Silicon Valley Silicon Valley is a region in Northern California that is a global center for high technology and innovation. Located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, it corresponds roughly to the geographical area of the Santa Clara Valley ...

. The two traveled to

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

, where Goldberg was studying at the

Stanford Graduate School of Business The Stanford Graduate School of Business is the Postgraduate education, graduate business school of Stanford University, a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California. For several years it has been the most selective ...

. Both were laid off four months later. Shellhammer remained in San Francisco and worked as an admissions counselor at the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising. Shellhammer also blogged about his experiences in fashion and nightlife. He wrote for an online magazine called ''JC Report'' where he observed and commented on fashion trends, as well as for '' A&F Quarterly'', and ''

The Baltimore Sun ''The Baltimore Sun'' is the largest general-circulation daily newspaper based in the U.S. state of Maryland and provides coverage of local, regional, national, and international news. Founded in 1837, the newspaper was owned by Tribune Publi ...

.'' In August 2005, he assisted in the founding of ''

,'' an online magazine about trends and lifestyle within the

gay community The LGBTQ community (also known as the LGBT, LGBT+, LGBTQ+, LGBTQIA, LGBTQIA+, or queer community) comprises LGBTQ individuals united by a common culture and social movements. These communities generally celebrate pride, diversity, individua ...

. Shellhammer also worked part-time at Design Within Reach (DWR) as a freelancer. Between 2008 and 2009, he worked for several furniture and design stores in

SoHo, Manhattan SoHo, short for "South of Houston Street", is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan, New York City. Since the 1970s, the neighborhood has been the location of many artists' lofts and art galleries, art installations such as The Wall (SoHo), and ha ...

Involvement in Fab.com and subsequent projects

In 2010, Goldberg approached Shellhamer with the idea to launch Fabulis, a company that would serve as a social media network to provide travel advice and reviews to the young gay community. Shellhammer agreed to sign onto the project, and in February 2011, the company's name was shortened to

. During Shellhammer's tenure as chief design officer, Fab expanded rapidly and was valued at over $1 billion at its peak. By 2012, the site had over 10 million members and offered over seven million unique products. Shellhammer left Fab in November 2013 and launched Shellhammer.co, a consulting company for business design, digital merchandising, and branding. He remains a stakeholder in and advisor to Fab. In 2014, Shellhammer became the chief design officer for the retailer Backcountry.com. In 2015, he founded Bezar and served as the company's chief executive officer. In 2016, Shellhammer was brought onto the executive team at

to serve as chief curation and merchandising officer.

Personal life

In March 2013, Shellhammer married partner Georgi Dimitrov Balinov, an

investment banker Investment banking is an advisory-based financial service for institutional investors, corporations, governments, and similar clients. Traditionally associated with corporate finance, such a bank might assist in raising financial capital by unde ...

Barclays Barclays PLC (, occasionally ) is a British multinational universal bank, headquartered in London, England. Barclays operates as two divisions, Barclays UK and Barclays International, supported by a service company, Barclays Execution Services ...

and a graduate of

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

. Actress and comedian

Sandra Bernhard Sandra Bernhard (born June 6, 1955) is an American actress, comedian, and singer. She first gained attention in the late 1970s with her stand-up comedy, where she often critiqued celebrity culture and political figures. Bernhard is also well kn ...

led the ceremony at New York's

Russian Tea Room The Russian Tea Room is an Art Deco Russo-Continental restaurant, located at 150 West 57th Street (between Sixth Avenue and Seventh Avenue), between Carnegie Hall Tower and Metropolitan Tower, in the New York City borough of Manhattan. ...

which also included performances by Billie Ray Martin,

Marcella Detroit Marcella Levy (born June 21, 1952), known professionally as Marcy Levy and (later in her career) Marcella Detroit, is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. She co-wrote the 1977 Eric Clapton hit " Lay Down Sally" and released her debut ...

, Andy Bell of

Erasure Erasure may refer to: Arts and media * Erasure (duo), an English pop group * ''Erasure'' (album), 1995, by the British group Erasure * Erasure poetry, a form of found poetry created by erasing words from an existing text * ''Erasure'' (novel), ...

, and

Latrice Royale Timothy K. Wilcots (born February 12, 1972), better known by the stage name Latrice Royale, is an American drag performer, recording artist, and reality television personality. She is best known for her appearances on the fourth season of ''RuP ...

. Lady Bunny was the dj. Shellhammer maintained a home in

Sparrow Bush, New York Sparrow Bush is a hamlet (and census designated place) in the town of Deerpark, in Orange County, New York, United States. The population as of the 2020 census is 981. The community is located along state routes 42 and 97, northwest of Por ...

and later

Stuyvesant, New York Stuyvesant ( ) is a town in Columbia County, New York, United States. The population was 1,931 at the 2020 census,US Census Bureau, 2020 Census Report, Stuyvesant town, Columbia County, New York https://www.census.gov/search-results.html?search ...

. His weekend home and NYC apartment were both published in

Architectural Digest ''Architectural Digest'' (stylized in all caps) is an American monthly magazine founded in 1920. Its principal subjects are interior design and landscaping, rather than pure external architecture. The magazine is published by Condé Nast ...

. He is a noted art collector and was reported to have a number of

Andy Warhol Andy Warhol (;''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''"Warhol" born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director and producer. A leading figure in the pop art movement, Warhol ...

and

Keith Haring Keith Allen Haring (May 4, 1958 – February 16, 1990) was an American artist whose pop art emerged from the Graffiti in New York City, New York City graffiti subculture of the 1980s. His animated imagery has "become a widely recognized visual l ...

pieces in his possession in 2017. Shellhammer's San Francisco home was featured in ''

The Telegraph ''The Telegraph'', ''Daily Telegraph'', ''Sunday Telegraph'' and other variant names are often names for newspapers. Newspapers with these titles include: Australia * The Telegraph (Adelaide), ''The Telegraph'' (Adelaide), a newspaper in Adelaid ...

'' for its vibrant colors and "Warholian" interior design.

Awards and honors

''Fast Company'' magazine named Shellhammer one of the "100 Most Creative People in Business." He has had several profiles in the same publication under the same category. ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...

'' called Shellhammer the "King of Quirk." In 2016, Goucher, Shellhammer's alma mater, recognized him as a distinguished alumnus.

References

External links

* *
2012 Interview
with ''

Lifehacker ''Lifehacker'' is a weblog about life hacks and software that launched on 31 January 2005. The site was originally launched by Gawker Media and is owned by Ziff Davis. The blog posts cover a wide range of topics including Microsoft Windows, M ...

''
2013 Interview
with ''

Dezeen ''Dezeen'' is an online architecture, interiors and design magazine based in London, with offices in Hoxton, as well as New York City and Shanghai. History ''Dezeen'' was launched in London by Marcus Fairs at the end of November 2006. Its New ...

'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Shellhammer, Bradford Living people Goucher College alumni Parsons School of Design alumni Fashion journalists American gay writers American LGBTQ businesspeople American retail chief executives American company founders 20th-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American non-fiction writers American male bloggers American bloggers American chief executives of fashion industry companies American magazine editors American online publication editors Businesspeople from Baltimore LGBTQ people from Maryland American interior designers 1976 births LGBTQ people from New York (state) Businesspeople from New York City Writers from Maryland Writers from Manhattan People from Anne Arundel County, Maryland LGBTQ fashion designers 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American LGBTQ people