New York tech scene’s favorite ginger announced that he’ll be stepping down as CEO. This marks the second time since Rob Kalin started the company in 2005 that he’s given up his role, reports Venture Beat. CTO Chad Dickerson will be taking his place. On the company blog, Mr. Dickerson wrote:
“With engineering well in hand and a strong partner in Adam Freed (our COO), it’s time for me to focus my attention on other aspects of the business. I’m stepping into the role of CEO at Etsy, and I’m looking forward to working with all of the teams at Etsy to move faster as we scale while staying true to our values.”
When Mr. Dickerson first started, Etsy (ETSY) was just a 60 person start-up. Now the company employs 200 people and posted revenues of $40 million (on sales of $400 million) last year. Mr. Dickerson wrote that his focus will be the Etsy network, “I’m going to prioritize the needs of the Etsy community in the broadest sense — Etsy’s sellers, how we work with each other within the company, our local communities, and everyone whose lives we touch.”
The last time Mr. Kalin played musical chairs at the top was in July of 2008 when he NPR exec Maria Thomas took his spot. He resumed the CEO role in December, 2009 after Ms. Thomas left the company. But this time it sounds more permanent. On A VC, Fred Wilson wrote what sounds very much like a last goodbye.
“Rob is so very much that founder who cares intensely. He has given so much to the company over the years and he just completed a product roadmap that provides a guidepost for what Etsy will become in the coming years. As Rob transitions out once again, I want to personally thank him for all of this and more. Etsy is his creation and will always be.”
With word of Etsy’s once “hush-hush” new outpost in Hudson now confirmed, Mr. Dickerson will have the vagaries of a new office to contend with. Locals says Mr. Kalin confirmed by email earlier this year that Etsy will indeed be moving into n The Cannonball Factory on Columbia Street and plans to hire 50 new staffers.
