Other Leading Industries | Retail
President
Wantable Inc. | Milwaukee
Serial entrepreneur Jalem Getz co-founded his first company, Halloween costume retailer GMI, in 1995 at age 22. In 1999, he founded BuySeasons Inc., a New Berlin-based online costume retailer that grew to more than 500 full-time and 2,000 seasonal employees and $175 million in annual sales under his leadership. Getz sold BuySeasons to Liberty Media 2006 for over $55 million and remained CEO for another four years following the sale.
In 2012, he launched his next e-commerce venture, try-before-you-buy retailer Wantable Inc. The Milwaukee-based company relies on personal stylists and technology to curate a selection of clothing items that are shipped to subscribers who either choose to buy or return them. Wantable had its first profitable year in 2016 and the following year ranked No. 223 on the Inc. 5000. In 2018, the company received a $1.44 million investment in an equity round led by Cream City Venture Capital, Northwestern Mutual’s venture capital fund; Wantable has raised about $5 million to date.
The company has two Milwaukee-area locations – a 75,000-square-foot warehouse and 40,000-square-foot headquarters in the city’s Walker’s Point neighborhood. Last year, it opened a café in its office that has since become a popular gathering spot for entrepreneurs throughout the city. Now 10 years in, Wantable has around 400 employees, 300 of whom are local. Getz said in a 2021 interview that the company revenues are around $50 million.