William Alexander

I was born and raised in Okoboji, a small town in northwest Iowa. I split my time between our house in town and the farm, where there were always chores to be done. My dad grew up on a farm not far from ours, and he took every opportunity to make sure my two older brothers and I didn't become soft “town kids.” From picking rock to hoeing an 80-acre soybean field by hand, there was no shortage of manual labor. For that, I'm thankful.

My mom was born in rural China during the Cultural Revolution. She came to America through the manufacturing sourcing company she founded and ran across Hong Kong and Algeria.

My parents ran that sourcing company my entire life, and I joined the business as a bright-eyed, bushy-tailed fifth grader. My dad would bring me into his office after school and sit me down with a pile of BOMs and invoices, telling me to double and triple check that everything lined up. This was my first taste of the monotonous work we're now on a mission to automate.

I continued working for my parents through high school and even while completing my undergrad at Stanford University. I was promoted from data-checker to QC Controller, which meant taking weekend trips to Shanghai. By “trips,” I mean going straight from the airport to the factory, inspecting goods for ten hours, then back to the airport to fly home. I don't think I could handle that pace anymore.

I always knew I would be an entrepreneur. Before Arzana, I founded and ran a successful Neapolitan pizzeria in my hometown for five years and co-founded two startups with Marshall.

Arzana is the culmination of my life experiences. Seeing how hard it was to get fast, accurate responses from our suppliers on quotes, order confirmations, delivery status, and other inquiries made it obvious that somebody would eventually figure out a better way. I decided: why not be that somebody?

Throughout the Arzana journey so far, I've had the privilege to meet some of the smartest engineers, savviest businesspeople, and most down-to-earth individuals I've ever encountered. Through trade shows and factory visits, these folks have taught me more about the manufacturing and distribution industry than any college degree could.

I'll always owe a debt of gratitude to my parents for giving me the experience to even conceive of creating Arzana, and to those individuals and companies that first took a chance on our vision for the future.