Working at Grailed was a weird experience in all aspects. Team leads were primarily all guys, with superiority complexes—often times second questioning POC/Women to be of equal value for roles in leadership.
Initially, the clout and cool factor of working at the cross between fashion and tech was exciting, but faded quick once the toxicity of the workplace culture seeped into play.
When I first ramped up, they fired over 6 women who seemed fully capable in their roles. After asking around, it seemed like it was due to strong opinions, and a serious lack of direction/leadership. They even let go of their CMO, and the replacement hire which should've been a red flag upon joining. It was pretty clear that if you didn't believe in the CEO's Arun's overall vision (which changed every week) you were not a good fit. And if you had strong justified opinions about the product and company goals, you would be faced with tons of questions from people playing the "Devil's Advocate".
They launched a women's platform, without a clear strategy, and the team inevitably failed. A few weeks ago they even sent a mass-email stating that they were shutting it all down, which goes to show that it was never set up to succeed in the first place.
Comments made in the office were often times "Locker Room Talk" and weird and uncomfortable to hear as a dude. At one point, I overheard a colleague commenting on a female co-workers physique and "exotic" features. Weird stuff like that. There were also numerous workplace relationships, which is usually fine, however definitely did not feel appropriate at times, and felt uncomfortable to be around even. Also, so much vape smoke in the air, which was really weird? We had people who were part of the board come in, VC's, etc, and that just seemed like a bad look.
In terms of the work, there was autonomy. However, if you made a mistake, you probably would't hear the end of it. And feedback about the product was always taken personally, which is probs why it's stayed the same over the years. In all, bad vibes, environment and leadership. Don't be surprised if you join and people are leaving left and right, it's probably best for their mental wellbeing.
