Live-shopping startup Whatnot plans to grow its new Seattle outpost following a $225 million funding round announced this week.
The company aims to hire more than 75 employees in the region over the next six months — tripling its current local headcount — across product, engineering, and related roles.
Whatnot opened its downtown Seattle office earlier this year. The Los Angeles-based company, now valued at $11.5 billion (up from $5 billion a year ago), said the Seattle expansion is one of its largest talent investments to date.
Founded in 2019, Whatnot’s platform mixes e-commerce and livestream entertainment. Sellers host live video shows on the Whatnot app or website, auctioning or selling products in real time. Buyers can watch, chat, and bid directly during live streams.
The New York Times described the trend as “QVC for the TikTok era.” Whatnot competes against the likes of TikTok (TikTok Shop) and Seattle-based e-commerce giant Amazon (Amazon Live).
Whatnot facilitates transactions between buyers and sellers, and handles payments, logistics, and safety features. The company earns revenue by taking a commission — typically around 8% — on sales made by sellers ranging from independent entrepreneurs to established retailers.
Whatnot more than doubled live sales on its platform this year, to $6 billion. Buyers spend more than 80 minutes per day on Whatnot’s live shows, according to the company. Whatnot is not profitable.
Some of its fastest-growing categories include beauty, women’s fashion, handbags, electronics, antiques, coins, golf, snacks, and live plants.
The company’s Seattle office focuses on product and engineering, including areas such as machine learning, marketplace integrity, and trust & safety. Whatnot has 900 employees across its workforce.
Dan Bear, vice president of engineering, and Kelda Murphy, vice president of talent acquisition, are both based in Seattle. Bear previously opened Seattle offices for Snap, Hulu, and CloudKitchens.
Whatnot is one of more than 130 companies that operate satellite offices in the Seattle region, tapping into the area’s technical talent pool.
The company has 31 open positions on its jobs page. It is hosting an engineering and product networking event in Seattle on Nov. 4.
