Niraj S. Shah (born 1973/1974) is an American businessman, and co-founder, co-chairman, and CEO of online retailer

Wayfair Wayfair Inc. is an American e-commerce company based in Boston, Boston, Massachusetts that sells furniture and home goods online. Formerly known as CSN Stores, it was founded in 2002, and currently offers 14 million items from more than 11,000 gl ...

Early life

Shah grew up in

Pittsfield Pittsfield is the most populous city and the county seat of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the principal city of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Berkshire County. Pittsf ...

, Massachusetts, the son of immigrants from India. His grandfather ran a "steel manufacturing business in India, making pots and pans". His father worked for

General Electric General Electric Company (GE) was an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1892, incorporated in the New York (state), state of New York and headquartered in Boston. Over the year ...

as a mechanical engineer, and after his retirement, joined Wayfair early on, providing financial advice, and still works for the company. Shah graduated from

Cornell University Cornell University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university based in Ithaca, New York, United States. The university was co-founded by American philanthropist Ezra Cornell and historian and educator Andrew Dickson W ...

, where he earned a bachelor's degree in engineering in 1995.

Career

Shah co-founded Wayfair in 2002 with his Cornell classmate,

Steve Conine Steven K. Conine (born 1972/73) is an American businessman, and the co-chairman and co-founder (with Niraj Shah) of the online retailer Wayfair. Early life Raised in the New Vernon section of Harding Township, New Jersey, Conine spent some time ...

, and has been its CEO since its inception. Shah was included in the ''

Fortune Fortune may refer to: General * Fortuna or Fortune, the Roman goddess of luck * Luck * Wealth * Fate * Fortune, a prediction made in fortune-telling * Fortune, in a fortune cookie Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''The Fortune'' (19 ...

'' list of "40 under 40" for 2013. Shah was a director of the

Federal Reserve Bank of Boston The Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, commonly known as the Boston Fed, is responsible for the First District of the Federal Reserve, which covers New England: Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont and all of Connecticut excep ...

from 2017 to 2019. In May 2017, Wayfair's share price rose above $70 per share, making Shah and his co-founder

both billionaires. As of April 2022, his estimated net worth was $1.6 billion.

Philanthropy

Shah co-founded the Shah Family Foundation with his wife Jill in 2017, which supports education and healthcare programs.

Personal life

Shah is married to Jill Shah; they have two children, and live in the

Back Bay Back Bay is an officially recognized Neighborhoods in Boston, neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, built on Land reclamation, reclaimed land in the Charles River basin. Construction began in 1859, as the demand for luxury housing exceeded the ...

area of Boston. In 2013, Jill Shah sold her alternative medicine directory Jill's List, which employed 7 people, to California-based MINDBODY, and now runs their Boston office.

References

External links

Shah Family Foundation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shah, Niraj 1970s births 21st-century American businesspeople American billionaires American chairpersons of corporations American online retailer founders American people of Indian descent American retail chief executives Businesspeople from Massachusetts Cornell University alumni Federal Reserve Bank people Living people People from Pittsfield, Massachusetts