Global Real Estate & Workplace Lead at whatnot

This leadership role is designed for a heavyweight real estate strategist with 12+ years of experience, specifically within high-growth tech environments. The i

Work type: onsite

Location: New York, NY | Los Angeles, CA | San Francisco, CA | Seattle, WA

Salary: $200,000 – $260,000/yr

Type: Full-time

Summary

This leadership role is designed for a heavyweight real estate strategist with 12+ years of experience, specifically within high-growth tech environments. The ideal candidate has mastered the complexity of scaling physical footprints globally (US, EMEA, APAC) while maintaining a cohesive culture. You should be a hybrid expert who is equally comfortable negotiating multimillion-dollar leases as you are overseeing the technical details of a new office buildout or managing a global facilities team. The compensation is highly competitive ($200k – $260k), and the company is in a massive growth phase, aiming to increase its headcount by 50% by 2026. While the company maintains a "remote-first" philosophy, this is a high-visibility, on-site leadership position located in a major tech hub. You’ll also enjoy premium perks like a 4% 401k match, categorical allowances for wellness and childcare, and a unique monthly budget to "dogfood" the platform. **You might be a good fit if you...** * Have successfully led massive international office expansions from initial site selection to final occupancy. * Possess strong financial modeling skills to build long-range CapEx and OpEx budgets for a global portfolio. * Enjoy the challenge of translating a digital-first culture into functional, inspiring physical collaboration spaces. * Can navigate the high-stakes environment of executive reporting and Board-level strategic planning.

Job Description

## 🚀 Join the Future of Commerce with Whatnot!

Whatnot is the largest livestream shopping platform in North America and Europe to buy, sell, and discover the things you love. Whether it's trading cards, fashion, electronics, or live plants, our sellers are building real businesses across hundreds of categories. We're building live commerce at a scale that's never been done in the West, and there's no playbook to copy. The people here are shaping how an entirely new industry develops.

As a remote co-located team, we're inspired by our [values](https://www.whatnot.com/careers) and anchored in hubs across the US, UK, Ireland, Poland, Germany, and Australia. We move fast, stay close to our users, and focus on the work that drives the most impact.

We're one of the [fastest growing marketplaces](https://a16z.com/marketplace-100/) and were recently named the [#1 Best Startup Employer in America](http://google.com/search?q=%231+forbes+startup+employer&oq=%231+forbes+startup+employer&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOTIGCAEQRRg9MgYIAhBFGD0yBggDEEUYQDIGCAQQRRhAMgYIBRBFGEDSAQg1NzM0ajBqMagCALACAA&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8) by Forbes. Check out the latest Whatnot updates on our [news](https://blog.teamwhatnot.com/) and [engineering blogs](https://medium.com/whatnot-engineering) and join us as we enable anyone to turn their passion into a business and bring people together through commerce.

## 💻 Role

We are seeking a Global Real Estate & Workplace Lead to define and execute Whatnot's real estate and workplace strategy as we scale from 1,000 to 1,500+ employees in 2026 and expand our footprint across the U.S., Europe, and Asia. This role is the strategic and operational leader for all real estate transactions, office buildouts, and facilities operations globally—ensuring our physical spaces support intentional collaboration and connection while honoring Whatnot's remote-first culture.

You'll report to our Chief People Officer and partner with senior leadership across Finance & Operations to shape office footprint decisions, manage complex lease negotiations, oversee construction and design, and build scalable workplace operations. This role requires deep real estate expertise, strong financial acumen, and the ability to translate business strategy into physical space — while building and leading a high-performing global team.

• Own Whatnot's global real estate strategy, including footprint planning, location selection, and lease vs. build decision frameworks that align with business growth, talent strategy, and financial objectives.

• Lead all real estate transactions — lease negotiations, renewals, expansions, and exits across existing and new markets including U.S., Europe, and APAC hubs.

• Direct design, construction, and buildout for new offices and expansions, ensuring projects are delivered on time, on budget, and aligned with Whatnot's brand, culture, and operational needs.

• Establish and implement global workplace standards, including design principles, space utilization frameworks, and "kit of parts" to ensure consistency, scalability, and operational efficiency across all locations.

• Build and manage vendor ecosystems for architecture, construction, FF&E, property management, facilities services, and workplace operations, driving cost efficiency and quality standards globally.

• Oversee facilities operations at scale — maintenance, compliance, vendor management, space planning, and day-to-day workplace experience across all global offices

• Partner with Finance to develop and manage real estate and facilities budgets, including long-range forecasting, capital expenditure planning, and scenario modeling for growth and contraction scenarios.

• Collaborate with Security, IT, Legal, and People teams to integrate technical infrastructure, workplace policies, and compliance requirements into all real estate and buildout projects.

• Lead, hire, and develop a global real estate and workplace team, including project managers, facilities leads, and workplace coordinators across geographies.

• Create executive-level reporting on real estate portfolio performance, project status, budget adherence, and strategic recommendations for leadership and Board audiences.

## 👋 You

People who do well at Whatnot tend to be comfortable figuring things out as they go, biased toward action, and genuinely curious about what they're building. They care more about outcomes than credit and stay close to the product and the people using it.

• As the leader of our global real estate and workplace function, you should have 12+ years of experience in corporate real estate, facilities, or workplace strategy at high-growth tech companies, with demonstrated success building from the ground up, plus:

• Deep expertise in lease negotiations, real estate transactions, and portfolio management across multiple geographies and lease structures.

• Proven track record leading complex construction and design projects — including buildouts, renovations, and new office launches — from concept through occupancy.

• Strong financial and analytical skills to develop business cases, manage P&L accountability, and build long-range real estate and facilities models.

• Experience building and scaling teams, including hiring, developing, and managing real estate, project management, and facilities professionals globally.

• Strategic mindset with strong operational execution — comfortable setting long-term vision while driving day-to-day project delivery and vendor management.

• Exceptional stakeholder management and communication skills, with ability to influence senior executives and translate business needs into real estate strategy.

• Experience managing real estate operations during rapid growth, including international expansion and multi-site management.

• Generous Holiday and Time off Policy

• Health Insurance options including Medical, Dental, Vision

• Work From Home Support

• Home office setup allowance

• Monthly allowance for cell phone and internet

• Care benefits

• Monthly allowance for wellness

• Annual allowance towards Childcare

• Lifetime benefit for family planning, such as adoption or fertility expenses

• Retirement; 401k offering for Traditional and Roth accounts in the US (employer match up to 4% of base salary) and Pension plans internationally

• Monthly allowance to dogfood the app

• All Whatnauts are expected to develop a deep understanding of our product. We're passionate about building the best user experience, and all employees are expected to use Whatnot as both a buyer and a seller as part of their job (our dogfooding budget makes this fun and easy!).

• Parental Leave

• 16 weeks of paid parental leave + one month gradual return to work *company leave allowances run concurrently with country leave requirements which take precedence.

## 💛 EOE

Whatnot is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. We value diversity, and we do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, parental status, disability status, or any other status protected by local law. We believe that our work is better and our company culture is improved when we encourage, support, and respect the different skills and experiences represented within our workforce.

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