Starting & Scaling Flexport With Ryan Petersen | EM Group Chat #166

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Recording of the Everything Marketplaces Group Chat #166 (7/30) with Ryan Petersen, who's the Founder & CEO of Flexport. Flexport is a supply chain & global logistics platform that helps power global trade. In 2023 Flexport helped move nearly $33 billion in merchandise. Flexport has also raised over $2.4 billion from top investors like a16z and SoftBank.

0:06 Intro
1:04 Ryan's background
3:54 The first steps for starting Flexport
6:19 When Ryan had conviction that Flexport would work & raised capital
8:20 The complex process & coordination involved with transactions on Flexport
10:34 Sequencing when solving problems for customers
12:20 How Flexport has evolved & scaled
17:00 Initially leading sales for Flexport
17:52 Ryan learnings around operating Flexport being operationally complex
20:09 Early hires that were key for Flexport
23:00 The Flexport team
24:25 Fundraising learnings after raising $2.4B from top investors
31:53 Group Q&A on balancing initial product-market fit with growth
35:13 Group Q&A on opportunities for freight
36:52 Group Q&A on how Ryan stays up to date on relevant news
38:09 Group Q&A on how AI & new tools would impact starting Flexport in 2024
40:24 Group Q&A on the future for Flexport
44:58 Ryan sharing parting marketplace advice

Ryan on Twitter/X: https://www.x.com/typesfast
Flexport: https://www.flexport.com
Mike (Yoroomie) on Twitter/X: https://www.x.com/yoroomie

You can also find this group chat in audio format as an episode on our Everything Marketplaces podcast on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also connect with marketplace founders & leaders from our group chats in the Everything Marketplaces community.