How Whatnot Embeds Customer Focus into Its Culture Beyond Just Dogfooding

Welcome to Modern CEO! I’m Stephanie Mehta, CEO and chief content officer of Mansueto Ventures. Each week, this newsletter explores inclusive leadership approaches drawn from conversations with executives, entrepreneurs, and the pages of Inc. and Fast Company.

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Whatnot’s Customer-Centric Culture Starts with Its Own Employees

On any given workday, employees at Whatnot—an app for live-shopping trading cards, apparel, and other items—are actively using, selling, and buying on the platform. This isn’t idle activity; it’s a core part of their job evaluation.

“We only exist to the extent that we provide our customers a lot of value. If you want to build a customer-centered culture, you have to actually follow through on building one and inject it everywhere you possibly can in the organization.”

Since its launch in 2019, Whatnot has embedded customer focus into every aspect of its operations, beginning with the hiring process.

Hiring with Customer Perspective in Mind

During interviews, candidates are asked:

• “Have you used the app?”
• “What do you think about it?”
• “What could be improved?”

“We want to see that you actually use it, you understand it, and you can think through the lens of a customer,” LaFontaine explains.

Mandatory Customer Immersion for All Employees

Once hired, every one of Whatnot’s more than 1,000 full-time employees is required to:

• Answer customer support tickets each quarter
• Sell items on the app
• Purchase items using the app

The company provides $150 in credits to facilitate purchases and allows employees to complete these tasks during company time.

While many companies practice “dogfooding”—using their own products—few mandate it as rigorously as Whatnot. Employees who fail to meet these expectations cannot achieve “meets expectations” on their performance reviews.

Leadership in Action: LaFontaine’s Hands-On Approach

LaFontaine himself has gone live on the app to sell items, including Pokémon cards and toys. Last quarter, he sold Whatnot-branded merchandise and donated the proceeds to charity.

His personal selling experiences have given him firsthand insight into customer challenges, such as maintaining composure on camera while managing listings. He has encouraged product teams to address these pain points. When new seller features are introduced, product teams receive immediate feedback from power sellers—some employees sell thousands of items monthly.

Customer service teams, too, benefit from hands-on experience, making them more effective at resolving issues.

Proven Results: Growth Fueled by Customer Focus

Whatnot’s customer-first strategy appears to be paying off. The company reports that 20 million new accounts were created last year, and the app continues to expand its user base.