Co-Founder & CEO of Whatnot

New York, NY, USA
Live Event: Please Contact Virtual Event: Please Contact More Fee Info

Grant LaFontaine Biography

Grant LaFontaine is the co-founder and CEO of Whatnot, a leading live shopping platform operating in North America, the United Kingdom, and Europe. LaFontaine holds a degree in economics from Cornell University and has a background in technology and product development.

Before launching Whatnot, LaFontaine held product marketing roles at Google and YouTube and served as a product manager in Facebook's AR/VR division. He also co-founded Kit, a startup later acquired by Patreon, and participated in Y Combinator. These experiences contributed to his approach to product development, hiring, and co-founder dynamics, and provided insight into building consumer technology platforms that engage passionate communities.

LaFontaine co-founded Whatnot with Logan Head, initially focusing on Funko Pop collectors before expanding to categories such as sports cards, sneakers, fashion, coins, and live plants. Under LaFontaine's leadership, Whatnot became one of the first U.S.-based companies to leverage the social commerce trend, introducing a live-auction format that combines entertainment, community, and real-time shopping. The platform attracts hundreds of thousands of new users each week, hosts millions of hours of livestreams, and facilitates the sale of thousands of products every minute.

Whatnot's growth has included surpassing billions of dollars in live sales and achieving multi-billion-dollar valuations through several funding rounds. The company has received backing from investors such as Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital, DST Global, CapitalG, Lightspeed, and Y Combinator. Whatnot has been featured on the CNBC Disruptor 50 list and recognized as a top company in the Marketplace 100 ranking.

LaFontaine has appeared on podcasts including "Masters of Scale," "The Founders Project," and "Social Currency," where he discusses topics such as scaling marketplaces, niche-first growth strategies, and community-driven commerce. He emphasizes rapid iteration based on user feedback and a disciplined hiring process as key elements of Whatnot's success. With a significant share of the live commerce market in the United States and ongoing international expansion, LaFontaine is recognized for his influence in the e-commerce and retail technology sectors.

BOOK Grant LaFontaine

Speaker profile last updated by AAE Talent Team on 08/18/2026.

Grant LaFontaine Videos

The rise of live online shopping (Whatnot's Grant LaFontaine) | Rapid Response

The rise of live online shopping (Whatnot's Grant LaFontaine) | Rapid Response

While digital live shopping has been popular for years in Asia, the phenomenon has only recently begun to take off in the U.S., thanks in large part...

How to Build an $11B Empire Selling Funko Pops | Whatnot CEO Grant Lafontaine Joins TBPN

How to Build an $11B Empire Selling Funko Pops | Whatnot CEO Grant Lafontaine Joins TBPN

TBPN.com is made possible by:  Ramp - https://ramp.com Figma - https://figma.com Vanta - https://vanta.com Linear - https://linear.app Eight...

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    Grant LaFontaine is a keynote speaker and industry expert whose speaking topics include Business Growth, Entrepreneurship, Executive Leadership, Futurism, Marketing
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Grant LaFontaine is a keynote speaker and industry expert who speaks on a wide range of topics. The estimated speaking fee range to book Grant LaFontaine for your event is available upon request. Grant LaFontaine generally travels from New York, NY, USA and can be booked for (private) corporate events, personal appearances, keynote speeches, or other performances. Similar motivational celebrity speakers are Lukas Flöer, Shirah Benarde, Shirah and Michael Benarde, Samyutha Reddy and Yazmin Cazares. Contact All American Speakers for ratings, reviews, videos and information on scheduling Grant LaFontaine for an upcoming live or virtual event.

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