4
Vivek Kumar
Group CEO & Managing Director, Articore Group
2025 – Present
1 year (current)
Legacy
As a senior executive, he helped manage the highly complex platform scaling during the pandemic.
Redbubble
E-Commerce / Creator EconomyFounded 2006- HQ today: Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Reviewed by Swet Parvadiya
Company data updated: October 2026
Leadership History
Redbubble: CEO History
4 leaders · 2006 to present
Who is the CEO of Redbubble?
Vivek Kumar is the CEO of Redbubble, in the role since 2025. The first chief executive was Martin Hosking, from 2006.
- Current CEO
- Vivek Kumar (since 2025)
- First CEO
- Martin Hosking (2006)
- Leaders documented
- 5
- Founded
- 2006
| Name | Role | From | To | Years in role |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vivek Kumar | Group CEO & Managing Director, Articore Group | 2025 | Present | 1 |
| Robin Mendelson | Chair of the Board | 2025 | Present | 1 |
| Michael Ilczynski | Chief Executive Officer | 2021 | 2023 | 2 |
| Martin Hosking | Co-founder; former CEO and Managing Director | 2006 | 2025 | 19 |
- Who was CEO of Redbubble before Vivek Kumar?
- Martin Hosking was CEO of Redbubble from 2006 to 2025, before Vivek Kumar took over in 2025.
Company Overview
Redbubble is one of the oldest and largest print-on-demand marketplaces. It started in Melbourne in 2006, listed on the ASX in 2016, and bought US rival TeePublic in 2018. After a pandemic boom in FY21 and three years of losses, the parent was renamed Articore Group in 2024. Under Group CEO Vivek Kumar, appointed in June 2025, it returned to full-year profit in FY26. The Redbubble site sells stickers, apparel, phone cases, wall art, stationery and homewares, all printed on demand by partner factories. The company is headquartered in Melbourne, Australia. Redbubble was founded in 2006 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, by Martin Hosking, Peter Hershberg, and Paul Vanzella, pioneering the online print-on-demand marketplace for independent artists worldwide.
Redbubble earns money as the merchant of record on every sale. Artists upload designs for free and set a margin on top of a base price; a shopper pays the retail price; Redbubble routes the order to a third-party printer near the customer, pays the fulfiller's base cost, pays the artist's margin, and keeps the rest along with shipping revenue. Since 2023 it has also charged artist account fees on lower-earning accounts. Articore reports two numbers: total revenue (~$263M (A$408.5M) in FY26, which includes shipping and artist margins) and marketplace revenue (~$229M (A$354.5M) in FY26). Paid marketing is the main swing cost, so management tracks gross profit after paid acquisition (GPAPA), which reached a record 28.6% margin in FY26.
3
Robin Mendelson
Chair of the Board
2025 – Present
1 year (current)
Legacy
Brought massive Amazon marketplace expertise to the board, heavily influencing the shift towards profitability.
2
Michael Ilczynski
Chief Executive Officer
2021 – 2023
2 years
Key Decisions & Impact
Ilczynski attempted a highly aggressive turnaround strategy focused on restoring artist margins, but resigned abruptly due to personal reasons after a very short tenure as CEO.
Legacy
Serving briefly as CEO, he tried to stabilize the completely collapsing share price after the pandemic boom.
1
Martin Hosking
Co-founder; former CEO and Managing Director
2006 – 2025
19 years
Key Decisions & Impact
Hosking repeatedly stepped back into the CEO role as a 'savior' figure whenever the company faced catastrophic financial collapse, ruthlessly slashing costs to keep the marketplace alive.
Legacy
As Co-Founder, he remains the absolute spiritual and strategic anchor of the company.
Other senior executives
These officers report to the chief executive and are not part of the CEO timeline above.
- Derek Yung, Group Chief Financial Officer (2026 – present)Source →
Challenges & Strategic Context
Revenue has fallen every year since the FY21 pandemic peak, from ~$370M (A$573M) in FY22 to ~$263M (A$408.5M) in FY26, as traffic from Google search and paid ads became more expensive and less reliable. Redbubble also has to police trademark and copyright infringement in user uploads, keep artists engaged after introducing account fees, and compete with Amazon Merch on Demand, Etsy, Zazzle, Society6 and creator-storefront tools such as Printful, Printify and Fourthwall.
Redbubble CEO and Leadership FAQ
Who is the current CEO of Redbubble?
Vivek Kumar has been Group CEO of Articore, the owner of Redbubble and TeePublic, since June 2025, and Managing Director since 6 August 2025. He previously ran TeePublic and then both marketplaces as CEO, Marketplaces.
Who have been Redbubble's CEOs?
Co-founder Martin Hosking led Redbubble from its early years through the 2016 IPO. Barry Newstead took over in 2018, Michael Ilczynski led from 2021 to 2023, Hosking returned to lead the 2023-2025 turnaround, and Vivek Kumar became Group CEO in June 2025.
What has Vivek Kumar changed as CEO?
Kumar has focused on platform synergies between Redbubble and TeePublic, cost discipline and profitable revenue. In his first full year Articore posted EBIT of ~$6.64 million (A$10.3 million), versus a loss in FY25.
Who is Articore's CFO?
Derek Yung is Group CFO, following a CFO change announced in January 2026. Curtis Davies is Deputy Group CFO.
Who chairs Articore's board?
US-based director Robin Mendelson became Chair in June 2025 as part of a board and executive renewal. Shareholders defeated board-opposed resolutions to change directors at a 2025 extraordinary general meeting.
Who is the current CEO of Redbubble (Articore Group)?
Martin Hosking is the Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Articore Group (Redbubble), having returned to lead the company as CEO in March 2023.
What was Martin Hosking’s historical role as CEO of Redbubble?
Martin Hosking served as Redbubble’s founding CEO from 2006 to 2018, guiding the company from a bootstrapped Melbourne startup to its 2016 ASX public listing, before stepping into a non-executive director role.
What was Martin Hosking’s professional background before Redbubble?
Before Redbubble, Hosking was a diplomat in the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs, an investment banker with McKinsey & Co., and a co-founder of pioneering Australian NASDAQ-listed internet company LookSmart.
Who was Barry Newstead and what did he accomplish as CEO?
Barry Newstead served as CEO from 2018 to 2020, orchestrating the successful US $41 million acquisition of TeePublic and expanding international fulfillment partnerships.
Who was Michael Ilczynski during his tenure as CEO?
Michael Ilczynski (former Seek executive) served as CEO from 2021 to early 2023, investing in supply chain technology and brand marketing during the post-pandemic e-commerce normalization.
Why did Martin Hosking return to the CEO role in 2023?
The board invited Hosking back in March 2023 to execute an urgent turnaround: slashing corporate overhead by AUD $45M+, restructuring artist fees, and focusing the company on sustainable cash flow and profitability.
Where is Redbubble’s corporate executive leadership based?
Redbubble maintains its global corporate headquarters in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, with a major US operational and executive hub in San Francisco, California, and TeePublic offices in New York City.
What core leadership philosophy defines Martin Hosking’s management?
Hosking emphasizes financial discipline, creator empowerment, long-term brand integrity, and fostering a culture of creative authenticity and operational accountability.
Related Leadership Timelines
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