Draft:Alex Mehr
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|  |
Alex Mehr | |
|---|---|
| Education | Sharif University of Technology (BS) University of Maryland (MS, PhD) |
| Occupation | Entrepreneur |
| Known for | Zoosk Retail Ecommerce Ventures |
| Website | https://www.alexmehr.com/ |
Alex Mehr is an Iranian-American entrepreneur who co-founded the dating app Zoosk and the investment firm and alleged ponzi scheme Retail Ecommerce Ventures.
Early life and education
Mehr attended undergraduate school at Sharif University of Technology in Iran before immigrating to the United States to pursue a graduate degree.[1][2] Mehr earned a PhD from the University of Maryland and subsequently worked for NASA as an aerospace scientist.[3][4] He then attended business school at the University of California at Berekely, but dropped out to work on Zoosk.
Career
Mehr cofounded the dating app Zoosk with Shayan Zadeh, whom he met as an undergraduate at Sharif University of Technology and also immigrated to the US to pursue a graduate degree at the University of Maryland. On July 1, 2019, a deal was finalized Zoosk would be sold for $258 million to Spark Networks SE, a company who held other dating brands in its portfolio.[5]
During the late 2000s, Mehr met Tai Lopez, a self-help guru and serial entrepreneur.[3] Mehr and Lopez initially collaborated by creating MentorBox, a book shipping club, in 2016,[6] but in November 2019, the two founded Retail Ecommerce Ventures LLC, with Mehr serving as the chief executive officer.[7] The company was an investment firm and holding company which seeked to pay "discount prices" for the intellectual property of declining brands with brick-and-mortar stores.[3] Using this strategy, the company acquired companies such as Pier 1 Imports, Radio Shack, and Modell's Sporting Goods.[8] To finance these acquisitions, the company raised $230 million from at least 660 investors. However, the payments to investors stopped by December 2022.[9]
Legal issues
On September 22, 2025, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a lawsuit against Ecommerce Ventures, alleging that the company was a $112 million Ponzi scheme.[8] They stated that many of the companies ran by Ecommerce Ventures were highly unprofitable, causing Lopez to use new investor's funds to pay older investors. They also alleged that Mehr and Lopez embezzled tens of millions of dollars for personal uses.[7] The Federal Bureau of Investigation started contacting investors as part of a criminal investigation, although no charges have been filed as of February 2026.[9]
References
- ^ DeBaise, Colleen; Austin, Scott (9 March 2011). "The Top 50 Venture-Backed Companies". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 8 May 2026.
- ^ Kincaid, Jason (3 December 2009). "Zoosk Lands Another $30 Million For Social Dating". Washington Post. Retrieved 8 May 2026.
- ^ a b c Miranda, Leticia (7 August 2020). "Meet the tiny company snapping up iconic American brands who have been 'victim to the times'". NBC News. Retrieved 6 February 2026.
- ^ "How Zoosk's Co-Founders, Shayan Zadeh and Alex Mehr, Are Using Data and AI to Power Online Retail During Unprecedented Times of Uncertainty". Entrepreneur. Retrieved 8 May 2026.
- ^ Perez, Sarah (1 July 2019). "Spark Networks SE closes its $258M acquisition of dating brand Zoosk | TechCrunch". TechCrunch. Retrieved 8 May 2026.
- ^ Al-Muslim, Aisha (25 August 2020). "Pair of Entrepreneurs Aim to Refashion Zombie Retailers Into Online Powerhouses". The Wall Street Journal. ProQuest 2436917717. Retrieved 9 February 2026.
- ^ a b Stieb, Matt (6 October 2025). "'Do You Believe I'm a Scam? Haha'". Intelligencer. New York Magazine. Retrieved 6 February 2026.
- ^ a b Cerullo, Megan (26 September 2025). "Buyers of Radio Shack, Pier 1 Imports and other brands accused of running $112 million Ponzi scheme". CBS News. Retrieved 9 February 2026.
- ^ a b Kapner, Suzanne; Gladstone, Alexander (10 February 2026). "He Vowed to Revive RadioShack and Pier 1. Investors Say They Were Swindled". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 18 February 2026.
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