User:Beatanese/Jan Bednar

Jan Bednar is the founder and CEO of ShipMonk, an order fulfillment company headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

Early life and education
Jan Bednar was born in the Czech Republic on July 13, 1991. He immigrated to the United States at the age of seventeen, completing the remainder of his secondary education at Cardinal Gibbons High School in Fort Lauderdale. He then went on to attend Florida Atlantic University, graduating in 2014 with a Bachelor of Commerce in Management of Information Systems.

Career
In 2014, Bednar started his first company, a package forwarding service called BedaBox. Shortly after, BedaBox was accepted into Florida Atlantic University’s accelerator program, FAU Tech Runway, which provided Bednar with free resources to grow his business. In 2016, after a gradual shift towards eCommerce order fulfillment, BedaBox was officially rebranded as ShipMonk.

Since its launch, ShipMonk has expanded nationally and internationally by opening an office in Prague, as well as facilities in San Bernardino, California, and Pittston, Pennsylvania. In 2018, the company received its first round of funding — $10 million from a Series A investment.

Awards

 * 2014 FAU Business Plan Competition (1st place)
 * 2014 Florida Venture Forum Collegiate Competition (1st place)
 * 2018 Forbes’ 30 Under 30 (Retail & eCommerce)
 * 2019 FAU Tech Runway Maverick Reception Award (Maverick Venture of the Year)
 * 2020 Excellence in Customer Service Award