Senior Software Engineer, Insider - Faire, Kitchener-Waterloo

Position Summary: Senior Software Engineer, Insider

Faire is a leading technology wholesale platform dedicated to empowering local businesses. We believe in the future of local commerce and are committed to levelling the playing field for independent retailers globally. By harnessing the power of tech, data, and machine learning, Faire connects a vibrant community of entrepreneurs, helping local shops discover and stock the best products from around the world. If you're looking for Faire jobs that make a real impact on local communities, this opportunity is for you.

As a Senior Software Engineer on Faire’s Insider pod, a critical part of the Value Pillar, you will be instrumental in developing and enhancing our membership program. The Insider program is designed to deliver exclusive benefits to retailers, ensuring they consistently receive the lowest landed cost in wholesale. Through features like free shipping, special discounts, and premium services, Insider reinforces the value proposition of Faire, making it the obvious choice for our most engaged retailers to start and expand their businesses.

In this role, you will own the core services and systems that power the Insider membership. Your work will directly influence the benefits retailers experience, from free-shipping coverage and discount targeting to enrollment and activation funnels. You will ensure the membership lifecycle consistently reinforces the program's value at every touchpoint, leveraging your engineering experience to build robust and scalable solutions.

Key Responsibilities

• Own critical services within our Kotlin-based backend that power the Insider membership program.
• Collaborate cross-functionally with Data Science, Product, and Design teams to prototype, evaluate, and productionize improvements to the Insider user experience.
• Measure and iterate on program performance using experimentation and analytics, focusing on growing active Insiders, GMV per Insider, and enrollment rates.
• Reinforce Insider value across cart, checkout, discovery, and post-order surfaces so members consistently see and use the savings they’re entitled to.
• Mentor engineers and contribute to team best practices in design reviews, performance tuning, and system architecture.

Skills and Experience

To excel in this Senior Software Engineer role at Faire, candidates should bring a strong technical background, a collaborative spirit, and a passion for applying data and algorithms to real-world business challenges. We are looking for individuals who can contribute significantly to our backend systems and drive innovation within the Insider program.

• Experience: 5+ years in backend systems development; marketplace experience is a valuable asset.
• Technical Depth: Proficiency in Kotlin, Java, or similar object-oriented languages; comfort with distributed systems, service design, and performance optimization.
• Data Fluency: Experience integrating with ML-driven decision systems, experimentation frameworks, or real-time data pipelines, demonstrating a strong understanding of data's power.
• Collaboration: Strong communication skills and a proven track record of partnering with cross-functional stakeholders, from Data Science to Product Management, to deliver complex systems.
• Mindset: Curiosity and a drive to understand complex market dynamics; passion for applying data and algorithms to real-world business problems.
• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science/Engineering or equivalent industry experience.

Perks and Benefits at Faire

Joining Faire means becoming part of a dynamic team that values speed, innovation, and community. We offer a supportive environment where you can own meaningful problems and see the clear results of your work, contributing to the growth of local businesses globally. This is an excellent opportunity to advance your engineering career within a company that truly invests in its people and technology.

• Move fast: Own meaningful problems that serve customers around the globe with the agency to move fast and see your results clearly.
• Equipped to scale: We invest in what matters, including the latest enterprise AI tools, to help you work smarter and get more out of every day.
• Best in class: Our team is full of sharp, kind, and generous colleagues who care about their craft and about helping you grow in yours.
• Real rewards: Competitive pay, equity, and comprehensive benefits designed to support your life inside and outside of work.
• Belonging: We're intentional about building an environment where every Faire employee has equal access to opportunities, growth, and success.

Faire offers a hybrid work model where employees typically come into the office three days per week (Tuesdays, Thursdays, and a third flexible day). Additionally, hybrid roles provide the flexibility to work remotely for up to four weeks per year.

The salary range for this role in Canada is $156,000 - $214,500 per year. Actual base pay will be determined based on permissible factors such as transferable skills, work experience, market demands, and primary work location. This role is also eligible for equity and comprehensive benefits, reflecting Faire's commitment to rewarding its team members.