Building on Faire’s ‘Foundation’ With Data and More | Q&A With Chief Revenue Officer Jennifer Burke

In January, online wholesale marketplace Faire promoted Jennifer Burke, its former head of revenue, to serve as the company’s chief revenue officer.

Since joining Faire in 2019, Burke has been “instrumental in building our North American revenue teams from the ground up,” said Faire in a release. In her new role, she will oversee North American brand partnerships, brand success, retailer sales and revenue operations, while serving as a “critical voice for our retailers and brands on the core team.”

Prior to Faire, Burke spent four years at ClassPass, where she led growth and supply, expanding the company’s partner network from 100 to more than 15,000 partners across more than 100 markets globally. Her experience also includes strategic roles at organizations including Bain & Co., McCann Erickson, MasterClass and Disney.

During her time at Faire, Burke led the transformation from the company’s early days to its current position, “scaling the community to more than 15 times its initial size.” She has led key revenue generating initiatives like Faire’s Insider Partnership Program, Paid Placement and the expansion of its Retailer Sales functions. Additionally, Burke helped build and scale the online marketplace’s team dedicated to “prospecting, acquiring and supporting the success of brands,” it said in a release.

To help its users and other members of the industry get to know Burke better, Faire recently released the following question-and-answer series that it hosted with its new chief revenue officer:

Q: What are you most proud of during your time at Faire?

A: “There’s been so much we have accomplished over the last five years, but two areas stick out.

“First, I’m really proud of how we’ve built such a high-performing, collaborative sales team culture. When I joined Faire, the sales team was a small group of 15 to 20, many new to tech or sales. Today, we’ve grown into a global organization of over 150, with most of those early employees still thriving here. Together, we’ve cultivated a unique sales culture that balances collaboration, celebration and customer-first principles with a fierce drive to achieve ambitious goals. Our team doesn’t just hit targets – they actively shape the product experience by sharing customer insights and partnering with cross-functional teams to prioritize impactful improvements.

“Another standout moment is how we rallied to support our customers during the early months of the pandemic, amidst so much uncertainty. One of our superpowers is its ability to pivot quickly to meet customer needs. This was never more evident than in 2020. As retail stores faced closures and inventory shortages, our team adapted by onboarding essential goods like face masks and food products and helped retailers access government loans. That responsiveness made a tangible difference for our customers and reinforced Faire’s commitment to their success. This attitude remains core to our DNA, and we’ve had many more examples since – like launching new shipping solutions or scaling onboarding efforts to support our growing community.”

Q: What advice would you give yourself 10 years ago?

A: “Do more things that scare you.

“I got into sales by accident. I joined ClassPass to be a “general manager” of a market, but very early on, around day two, I was told I needed to do sales for a bit instead. I was sent on a flight a week later to walk the streets of Chicago and sell studios to join ClassPass. I was terrified. I had never done sales and certainly never ‘cold’ sales with no real playbook to follow. To this day, it was the most transformative experience I’ve ever had.

“It ended up being something I not only enjoyed but was good at, and it taught me that the things you are most scared of often stretch you and teach you the most. This has remained true at every step of my career since – from taking on new roles or teams I thought were ‘too big’ for me, to doing more public speaking, to the thousands of calls required to hit a sales goal.”

Q: What are you most excited about for Faire’s future?

A: “What excites me the most is how much opportunity we still have to further our mission of strengthening the unique characters of local communities. I continue to be motivated by maintaining a world where each neighborhood has their own set of unique businesses that bring vibrancy, energy and diversity to their communities – reducing the ‘sea of sameness.’

“One thing that I’m particularly passionate about is how we can leverage our unique data set to better match brands and retailers that we think will be a strong fit for one another. We’ve made a lot of progress, but there is still so much more we can do to connect and create relationships that are successful. We also have an opportunity to provide even deeper recommendations to retailers to help optimize their margins – like, for example, ensuring they are buying in the right quantities and pricing correctly.

“I’m excited about continuing to build this foundation and leveraging our go-to-market teams to enable our customers to be even more successful with access to more of these robust insights.”

Q: If you could open your own retail shop, what would you sell?

A: “I am a big fan of hybrid stores – spaces that serve two purposes. Purpose one may be an experience or service they are providing like for example a spa, fitness studio or cafe. Purpose two – and what we see with our hybrid retailers – is offering retail merchandise that is complementary to that experience.

“I’d probably lean into this trend and open a yoga studio with an athleisure wear retail footprint. I love fitness studios – remnant of my ClassPass days – and could live in yoga gear. I’d bring that to life in a single space and offer individuals a way to get healthy and find products that help them extend that experience beyond the doors.”