About
In the Marketplace Trenches Since 2016
I have worked exclusively on marketplace platforms since 2016. Not SaaS. Not e-commerce. Marketplaces, and the unique problems that come with building two-sided markets from zero.
The Story
Why I Only Work on Marketplaces
When I built my first marketplace in 2016, a P2P rental platform, I quickly discovered that none of the standard product frameworks applied. The cold-start problem, the trust architecture, the supply-demand balancing act: these were problems that required a fundamentally different way of thinking.
I got obsessed. I read everything. I led product and engineering teams at scale. I made expensive mistakes, figured out what actually worked, and started advising other founders on the lessons I had learned the hard way.
In 2021, I co-founded Marketplace Studio to formalize that work, helping non-technical founders design, validate, and build marketplaces with greater clarity and confidence. Three years later I began embedding directly with early-stage teams as a fractional CPO, because founders needed more than strategy documents. They needed someone in the room.
The focus has never shifted since. Every client, every project, every hour of advisory work has been marketplace-specific. That depth is the only reason I can offer what most generalist product leaders cannot: genuine pattern recognition across 30+ marketplace builds in dozens of categories.
First Marketplace Build
Built my first marketplace, a P2P rental platform launched initially as mobile-first, then expanded to web after identifying the need for stronger acquisition, SEO, and accessibility across both sides of the market.
Led Product & Engineering at Scale
Led Product and Engineering across a distributed team of 50+ in partnership with the CTO. Introduced Design Thinking frameworks with the Lead Designer to improve problem definition, user validation, and cross-functional alignment.
Co-founded Marketplace Studio
Launched Marketplace Studio to help non-technical founders design, validate, and build marketplaces with greater clarity and confidence. Delivered strategy, product development, and go-to-market support across early-stage platforms.
Started Fractional CPO Engagements
Began embedding within early-stage marketplace teams to provide senior product leadership: establishing strategy, defining KPIs, and guiding execution without requiring a full-time executive hire.
30+ Platforms. $15M+ Invested.
Supported the launch of 30+ marketplace platforms from 0 to 1 across multiple industries, working with founders from pre-seed through Series A on product strategy, team structure, and execution.
How I Think
What I Believe About Marketplaces
Marketplaces are not normal products
Two-sided markets have dynamics that generalist product thinking gets wrong every time. Cold-start, liquidity, trust, network effects: these require a different playbook.
Depth beats breadth
I have turned down work outside the marketplace niche since 2016. That focus is the only reason I can genuinely help founders the way I do.
Speed of learning beats speed of building
Most founders build too much before they validate enough. The best thing I can do for most early-stage teams is slow them down on building and speed them up on learning.
Founders need a thinking partner, not a consultant
A consultant delivers a document. I sit in your leadership team, ask hard questions, and stay accountable to your outcomes, not a scope of work.
Want to work together?
Book a free 30-minute discovery call and tell me what you are building.