What Grant LaFontaine has said about Online marketplaces and the chicken-and-egg problem
2 quotes · 1 episode · Sep 21, 2026
Grant LaFontaine, Canadian entrepreneur, co-founder and CEO of the live-shopping marketplace Whatnot, has been quoted on Online marketplaces and the chicken-and-egg problem 2 times in 1 episode of My First Million, most recently on September 21, 2026. Each quote below is verbatim and links to the moment it was said.
In their words
LaFontaine argued that nearly every great company begins in a very small niche because small teams cannot create value in a mass market.
“And almost every great company starts an incredibly niche or small area and then takes that and catapults it forward”
My First Million: Whatnot founder: This is the future of e-commerce (Sep 21, 2026) · Listen from 16:36
LaFontaine said Whatnot solved the chicken-and-egg problem by being the only seller itself, listing authenticated items it sourced after purchase.
“So we were initially the seller on whatnot. And so all of the early inventory was us”
My First Million: Whatnot founder: This is the future of e-commerce (Sep 21, 2026) · Listen from 20:29
Episodes
Whatnot founder: This is the future of e-commerceMy First Million · Sep 21, 2026 · 1 h 2 min
Whatnot co-founder Grant LaFontaine tells Shaan Puri and Sam Parr how a Funko Pop marketplace became a $20 billion live-commerce company.