Bradford Shellhammer

"Fab has been a busy bee recently. Last week, the flash-sale site launched five new verticals. And..."

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 10:31:46 -0500

“Fab has been a busy bee recently. Last week, the flash-sale site launched five new verticals. And now, the New York-based startup has snapped up Berlin-based Casacanda and opened up their first international site, Fab.de.”

- Fast Company Magazine

Leaving Germany. And I’m sad about that. (Taken with...

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 10:22:50 -0500

Leaving Germany. And I’m sad about that. (Taken with Instagram at Lufthansa First Class Lounge FRA A)

"What I find most interesting is that many of the independent fashion designers we’re discovering and..."

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 10:19:10 -0500

“What I find most interesting is that many of the independent fashion designers we’re discovering and featuring are not classically trained. They found their way into fashion through architecture or graphic design.”

- Me, to Susan S. Szenasy, in Metropolis.

Ladies. (Taken with instagram)

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 03:10:23 -0500

Ladies. (Taken with instagram)

Hello from Germany. (Taken with instagram)

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 03:10:22 -0500

Hello from Germany. (Taken with instagram)

Billie! (Taken with instagram)

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 03:10:22 -0500

Billie! (Taken with instagram)

Fab.com (Taken with instagram)

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 03:10:20 -0500

Fab.com (Taken with instagram)

More heaven. (Taken with Instagram at Linders office)

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 03:10:07 -0500

More heaven. (Taken with Instagram at Linders office)

Heaven in Berlin. (Taken with Instagram at Butter Lindner)

Wed, 22 Feb 2012 03:09:15 -0500

Heaven in Berlin. (Taken with Instagram at Butter Lindner)

"Of course it is the Germans who have toilet paper, textured on one side, for grip, and smooth on the..."

Tue, 21 Feb 2012 09:30:54 -0500

“Of course it is the Germans who have toilet paper, textured on one side, for grip, and smooth on the other, for cheeks. Brilliant. I want to take rolls home with me.”

- Me, on TP in Berlin.

Fab Acquires Casacanda and Launches as Fab.de Serving Germany, Austria, & Switzerland

Mon, 20 Feb 2012 16:38:47 -0500

Fab Acquires Casacanda and Launches as Fab.de Serving Germany, Austria, & Switzerland:

betashop:

Fab today took a big step towards our mission of being the world’s most valuable design resource.

Fab has acquired Casacanda, the #1 flash sales website for design objects in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.

Casacanda, based in Berlin Germany, relaunches today as Fab.de with…

Bradford Shellhammer for Inked Magazine

Mon, 20 Feb 2012 05:24:19 -0500

dustincohen:

Bradford Shellhammer, one of the co-founder’s of Fab.com, for the March issue of Inked Magazine.

"The conversations by the co-founders on the site are about some of the finest things in life that..."

Sun, 19 Feb 2012 08:06:12 -0500

“The conversations by the co-founders on the site are about some of the finest things in life that you will admire and the one that can have the potential to define you. It is not surprising that Shellhammer gets involved in each and every product and nothing can be available on the website unless he approves the product. It is Goldberg who runs the business around that.”

- DailyDealMedia

"My life has always been about one thing: collecting. Art. People. Love. Toys. Shoes. Scars. Stories...."

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 15:22:12 -0500

“My life has always been about one thing: collecting. Art. People. Love. Toys. Shoes. Scars. Stories. Knowledge. Music. Design. Clothes. Myself.”

"Take your pleasure seriously."

Tue, 14 Feb 2012 19:56:41 -0500

“Take your pleasure seriously.”

- Charles Eames.

"I’ve always loved octopi. I love to eat them, I love the idea of having eight arms, and I love that..."

Tue, 14 Feb 2012 18:42:00 -0500

“I’ve always loved octopi. I love to eat them, I love the idea of having eight arms, and I love that they change colors. They are extremely smart creatures and I always felt they are these special alien things that don’t really belong with other fish. On some level, I relate to an octopus as well.”

- Me, to Inked Magazine

Bradford Shellhammer Whether it’s modern Italian...

Tue, 14 Feb 2012 18:33:00 -0500

Bradford Shellhammer

Whether it’s modern Italian chairs, handmade scarves fashioned from reclaimed saris in India, or incandescent lightbulbs, if it’s well-crafted Bradford Shellhammer will find it and find a way to offer it to you. It’s the love of design that led the Parsons grad to partner with an old friend last year to create something he calls a “marketplace for designers,” also known as Fab.com. As cofounder and chief creative officer of Fab.com, Shellhammer picks authentic products for an audience that appreciates and loves design. “People are old and new,” he says. “They live with vintage and modern, the handmade and the mass produced. We don’t sell things that belong in a bargain bin. We sell a healthy mix of designs, from furniture and T-shirts to drinking glasses and rejuvenated vintage typewriters.”

Shellhammer’s ink speaks to his eye for timeless and quirky pieces. An unfinished 15-year-old octopus covers the left side of his chest, and a three- year-old sleeve covers his right arm. “I was supposed to go back to fill in my chest but I lived with it for a week and didn’t feel like going back. There was something about it being unfinished that I loved. And, surprisingly, people always ask if my chest piece is new.”

Shellhammer got his first tattoo in a Baltimore basement when he was 18. Since then, the black dragon wrapped around his arm has been covered by an octopus creeping under gray waves, a work still in progress. For someone who falls in love with different things every week, Shellhammer has one lasting fascination: “I’ve always loved octopi. I love to eat them, I love the idea of having eight arms, and I love that they change colors. They are extremely smart creatures and I always felt they are these special alien things that don’t really belong with other fish. On some level, I relate to an octopus as well.”

Shellhammer says he looks for the unexpected when selecting designs and designers, and even his own friends. “That’s what drew me to tattooing,” he says. “I love the element of surprise in people. I love being in a meeting wearing a crisp white suit and rolling up my sleeve and saying, ‘Yeah, would you look at that.’” Although it’s taken him 10 years to find a tattoo artist whose work resonates with him—Troy Denning of Invisible NYC—finding great design to sell has been easier. “In the beginning, we were talking to every designer we knew, going to flea markets, trade shows, and reading magazines and blogs to find fantastical things. Now people are knocking on our doors.”

The young company now has 1.7 million members, and 100 employees in New York City alone. “It has been a blessing to start something during these times because people are really paying attention to what they spend their money on, and we want to make sure they spend it on things that live with them forever,” Shellhammer says.

The only items that are off-limits for Fab are things that are not authentic or that don’t honor a craft or trade. “We want to tell stories—via the visual and written word—about these people who create great things. We want to be inspiration builders, and I may sound like an idealistic design hippie, but the truth is, your lives are moved by the things you live with.”

Shellhammer says the biggest mistake you can make when designing your home is being afraid. “If you find something you love, put it in your home, don’t listen to other people. And if you like something someone else has, steal it!” The same can be said of tattoos. —Nadia Kadri

From Inked Magazinbe

Perfect color and composition.

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 15:29:49 -0500

Perfect color and composition.

Fab.com’s new office. (Taken with instagram)

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 13:59:43 -0500

Fab.com’s new office. (Taken with instagram)

View from my new office. (Taken with Instagram at Fab.com)

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 13:15:47 -0500

View from my new office. (Taken with Instagram at Fab.com)