Katrina Lake founded Stitch Fix and basically invented the idea of getting a box of clothes picked out for you by a combination of human stylists and algorithms. It sounds like a simple concept but building it into a real business was anything but.
She was born in San Francisco, went to Stanford, and worked at a consulting firm before launching Stitch Fix in 2011. The idea came from noticing that a lot of people hated shopping for clothes but still wanted to look good. So she built a service where you fill out a style profile, a stylist picks items for you, and you keep what you like and send back what you don't. Data and machine learning helped the stylists get better over time.
When Stitch Fix went public in 2017, Lake became the youngest woman to take a company public. She was 34. The company grew to millions of active clients and proved that there was a massive market for personalized shopping. The IPO was a big moment for women in tech and entrepreneurship.
The business has had its ups and downs since then. Stitch Fix faced challenges as the market shifted and competition increased. Lake stepped back from the CEO role, returned to it, and has navigated the company through some turbulent times. That kind of staying power says a lot about her commitment.
On Shark Tank as a guest shark, Katrina brings a tech and consumer perspective that's grounded in data. She understands personalization, logistics, and how to use technology to solve real consumer problems at scale.
Key milestones:
- Founded Stitch Fix in 2011, pioneering personalized online styling
- Youngest woman to take a company public (2017 IPO)
- Built a data-driven approach to fashion retail
- Navigated Stitch Fix through both rapid growth and market challenges