Bezar Explained

Bezar.com, Bezar
Location City:	560 Broadway, New York, NY 10012
Url:	www.bezar.com
Type:	design, retail, e-commerce
Language:	English
Area Served:	United States
Launch Date:	March 17, 2015
Current Status:	Acquired

Bezar was a curated online design marketplace founded in 2015 by former Fab co-founder Bradford Shellhammer (CEO), Matt Baer (COO), PieterJan Mattan (Creative Director), and Justin Chen (CFO).^{[1] [2]} The site featured unique pieces from both emerging designers and established brands in four categories: home, accessories, jewelry, and art.^[3] The company was headquartered in SoHo, Manhattan.

The name “Bezar” comes from a combination of the words bazaar and bizarre, which both are phonetically pronounced \bə-ˈzär\.^[4]

History

In 2013, Bradford Shellhammer left his role as co-founder and chief design officer of ecommerce website Fab, maintaining a role as a shareholder and non-executive advisor.^[5]

In early 2015, Shellhammer announced he would launch and curate his own online design marketplace. Bezar launched in March 2015, featuring four new virtual pop-up shops daily, and a range of exclusive collaborations with designers, labels and brands like FLOS ^[6] and Refinery29.^[7] Bezar's marketplace component, featuring hundreds of permanent designer storefronts, was rolled out in September 2015.^{[8] [9]}

Funding

Before its launch, Bezar raised a total of $2.25 million in two and a half weeks from seven investment funds and 20 individuals.^[10] Notable investors include designer Yves Béhar, Kenneth Lerer, Hiroshi Mikitani and Whoopi Goldberg.^[11]

Acquisition

In February 2016, Bezar was acquired by online luxury goods retailer AHAlife Holdings, Ltd. (ASX:AHL)^{[12] [13] [14]}

Notes and References

1. https://www.wsj.com/video/at-bezar-design-meets-retail/542FD270-688B-436A-923A-931CDD362015.html “At Bezar, Design Meets Retail.” The Wall Street Journal.
2. http://www.fastcompany.com/3040452/most-creative-people/fab-cofounder-bradford-shellhammer-is-launching-design-sales-site-bezar “Fab Cofounder Bradford Shellhammer Is Launching Design Sales Site Bezar.” Fast Company.
3. http://www.fastcompany.com/3040452/most-creative-people/fab-cofounder-bradford-shellhammer-is-launching-design-sales-site-bezar “Fab Cofounder Bradford Shellhammer is Launching Design Sales Site Bezar” Fast Company.
4. News: Lu. Julia. 2015-05-01. Bezar. 42. Surface. 2021-10-01.
5. Web site: Konrad . Alex . Fab.com Co-Founder Departs After Pivot From Flash Sales Model . 2024-07-16 . Forbes . en.
6. http://hypebeast.com/2015/6/flos-for-bezar-2015-summer-kelvin-table-lamp “Flos for Bezar 2015 Summer Kelvin Table Lamp” Hypebeast
7. http://tmagazine.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/07/13/five-to-follow-instagram-for-design-lovers-refinery29-art-airstream/?_r=0 “An Instagram for Design Lovers, Artworks for Sale from the Refinery29 Staff and an Airstream on a Boho Mission” New York Times' T Style Magazine
8. https://techcrunch.com/2015/03/17/bezar-bradford-shellhammers-reimagined-fab-com-goes-live-today/ “Bezar, Bradford Shellhammer’s Reimagined Fab.com, Goes Live Today.” TechCrunch.
9. http://www.fastcompany.com/3052202/most-creative-people/bradford-shellhammers-bezar-launches-designer-storefronts/1 “Bezar Launches Designer Storefronts” Fast Company
10. http://www.inc.com/christine-lagorio/bezar-launch-bradford-shellhammer.html “After Fast Times at Fab.com, a Founder Starts Over Slowly.” Inc.
11. http://www.dezeen.com/2015/01/08/interview-fab-co-founder-bradford-shellhammer-returns-bezar-online-marketplace-emerging-designers-ecommerce/ “Fab Co-Founder Returns with Bezar” Dezeen.
12. http://www.fastcompany.com/3056201/online-marketplace-bezar-has-been-acquired-by-ahalife “Online Marketplace Bezar Has Been Acquired By AHAlife.” Fast Company
13. https://techcrunch.com/2016/02/02/bezar-acquisition-bradford-shellhammer-ahalife/ “AHAlife Acquires Bradford Shellhammer’s Design Marketplace Bezar” TechCrunch
14. http://www.dezeen.com/2016/02/02/bradford-shellhammer-bezar-acquired-online-design-retailer-ahalife/ “Bradford Shellhammer's Bezar acquired by online retailer AHAlife” Dezeen