Five Below, Inc.
Explore Five Below
Core profile pages, annual revenue records, and related research hubs for this company.
Five Below, Inc.
Explore Five Below
Core profile pages, annual revenue records, and related research hubs for this company.
Company History
Founded 2002 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
David Schlessinger and Tom Vellios incorporated the company in January 2002 as Cheap Holdings and changed the name to Five Below in August 2002. The idea was simple but powerful: create a place where young customers could say yes to a wide range of fun products because most items cost $5 or less.
Schlessinger co-founded Five Below after earlier specialty retail experience and helped shape the company's youth-oriented value-store concept.
Vellios co-founded Five Below and helped develop the store prototype, merchandising approach, and early expansion model.
David Schlessinger and Tom Vellios found the company and open the first store in the greater Philadelphia area.
Five Below completes its IPO and begins trading on Nasdaq under the ticker FIVE.
Five Below launches e-commerce, adding digital reach to the store-led model.
Winnie Y. Park joins Five Below as president and CEO in December 2024.
Five Below ends fiscal 2025 with 1,921 stores across 46 states and $4.764B in net sales.
Five Below was founded in 2002 by David Schlessinger and Tom Vellios. The company opened its first store in the greater Philadelphia area and built a specialty value format around products mostly priced at $5 and below.
The strategic question is whether Five Below can grow past 1,900 stores without losing the product freshness and price clarity that made the format work.
This profile covers the founding story, business model, leadership, financials, major pivots, and current strategy.