Fab

Fab launched in 2010 as a flash-sale site for design goods, rocketed to a reported $1 billion valuation by 2012, and then collapsed within about two years. After mass layoffs in 2013 and asset sales in 2014–2015, the brand was acquired in 2015 and ceased operating as an independent retailer. Its rise and fall became a case study in startup overexpansion.

Fab raised more than $300 million from investors but spent heavily on marketing and a rapid European expansion, acquiring rival flash-sale companies in Germany just as the daily-deals model faded. When it pivoted from flash sales to a conventional design store, customer acquisition costs stayed punishing and revenue didn't keep pace. The company cut most of its staff during 2013 before the final sell-off.

Fab was founded by Jason Goldberg and Bradford Shellhammer — Goldberg as CEO and Shellhammer as the design conscience whose curated taste defined the brand's identity. Shellhammer's departure in 2013 roughly coincided with the company's decline. Goldberg later wrote candidly about the mistakes made during the expansion.

Fab no longer exists as an independent store; following the 2015 acquisition, its audience and inventory were folded into its acquirer's business. Shoppers who liked its indie-designer focus today gravitate to Etsy for artisan goods, while its mass-design niche is served by retailers like Wayfair. The Fab name is essentially a piece of e-commerce history now.