Startup Exits Podcast with Shayan Zadeh, founder of Zoosk
The $250 million sale to Spark Networks: how Shayan started, ran and sold Zoosk

Shayan Zadeh
Founder of Zoosk
With friend and co-founder Alex Mehr, Shayan Zadeh came to US from Iran at a time when both countries had no diplomatic relations or direct flights. They went on to study computer science, work at NASA and Microsoft, and start Zoosk – an Inc 5000 dating platform that went on to exit for $250 million.
We chat with Shayan about
- Coming to US as a founder
- Generating and filtering startup ideas
- Weathering a storm vs. Beating a dead horse
- Early days of Zoosk and key pivot
- Why have two CEOs at a startup?
- Cancelling an IPO
Shayan Zadeh is currently the CEO of DressBarn.