Mike Smith

Smith grew up in Northern Virginia and earned a bachelor’s degree at the University of Virginia and an MBA at UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business. Before Walmart, he worked in business and corporate development in software and consumer internet.⁠[1][2][3]

Smith worked at Walmart.com from 2003 to 2012, serving as vice president in 2008–2010 and COO in 2010–2012. He oversaw operations for the roughly $5 billion division and helped develop its Site to Store pickup service.⁠[4][5]

Smith joined personalized styling company Stitch Fix as COO in June 2012. His responsibilities expanded across operations, stylists, merchandising and customer experience as the company grew from a startup into a public business.⁠[4][5]

From March 2016 to September 2017, Smith served as general manager of Stitch Fix Men. He returned to the company-wide COO role in September 2017.⁠[4]

Stitch Fix’s official biography dates Smith’s appointment as president to October 2018, alongside his operating responsibilities. He later also served as interim CFO; a 2020 regulatory filing listed all three positions.⁠[4][6]

Herman Miller appointed Smith to its board and audit committee effective January 16, 2019, citing his e-commerce, customer-experience and operating expertise as relevant to its digital business.⁠[5]

Ulta Beauty announced Smith’s appointment as an independent director on September 19, 2019, effective the previous day. It highlighted his retail, data-analytics and logistics experience and his then-current roles at Stitch Fix and Herman Miller.⁠[3]

Stitch Fix disclosed that Smith intended to leave management to start a venture firm while remaining through the finance-leadership transition. It appointed him to the board that day. The announcement concerned his planned departure and immediate board appointment, rather than the end of his executive service.⁠[6]

Smith and former Shasta Ventures investor Nikhil Basu Trivedi launched Footwork with a $175 million first fund. They had served together on Imperfect Foods’ board and co-invested before combining their operating and investing experience to support early-stage founders.⁠[7]

Footwork led a $15 million Series A in mobile-commerce software company Via. Smith joined its board alongside Peterson Ventures’ Ilana Stern and Via’s two founders. The company provided merchants with text-message, messaging and mobile-app commerce tools.⁠[8]

Smith and Basu Trivedi disclosed that Footwork’s second fund closed in February 2025. The website lists $225 million and says investing began that year. They continued investing as equal general partners.⁠[9][1]

In an interview published by The Peel, Smith said public-company boards gave him access to enterprise-software buyers. He saw AI discussions extending across customer service, coding, marketing and supply chains, and considered operating experience useful for assessing demand.⁠[10]

Current Footwork and Ulta Beauty materials identify Smith as Footwork’s co-founder and general partner and a director of Ulta Beauty and MillerKnoll. Footwork’s disclosed portfolio spans consumer products, enterprise software, healthcare and AI applications, including Cradlewise, Heard, Felt, Elicit, GPTZero and Anything.⁠[1][2]

Firm website: https://www.footwork.vc/ (opens in a new window). X: https://x.com/msmith492 (opens in a new window). LinkedInLinkedInLinkedIn is a social networking platform for professionals. It was founded in 2002 by Reid Hoffman and others, launched in 2003, and listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 2011; after Microsoft acquired it for approximately $26.2 billion in 2016, it became a wholly owned Microsoft subsidiary. Its revenue comes from membership subscriptions, advertising, and recruitment solutions.Open the full entry: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelcsmith1/ (opens in a new window).⁠[1][11][12]