- Location
- California California USA
- Employment
- Full-time
- Seniority
- Senior
- Compensation
- $172,460–215,575/year
- Department
- IT & Technology Systems
- Industry
- Pre-Owned, Vintage & Circular Luxury
- Posted
- Nov 3, 2026
About The RealReal
The RealReal is a US luxury consignment marketplace founded in 2011. It sells pre-owned fashion, jewelry, watches, art and home furnishings through its website and stores. Its teams authenticate, price and photograph goods before they go on sale.
The RealReal seeks a Staff Software Engineer to lead architecture and development for its Sales & Retail platform, building tools for associates and scalable systems that support customer journeys. The role requires at least 8 years of software development experience, including Java and Ruby, and offers an expected annual salary range of $172,460–$215,575, with starting pay influenced by work location, skills, experience, market demands, and internal parity.
Role & Responsibilities
- Lead the architecture and development of software solutions, making strategic decisions that influence technical direction.
- Work with cross-functional teams to align technology development with business objectives and communicate technical concepts clearly to non-technical stakeholders.
- Conduct rigorous code reviews and advocate for best coding practices to ensure products are efficient and maintainable.
- Guide and support junior engineers, fostering their professional growth and contributing to a culture of excellence.
- Research emerging software engineering technologies and trends, identifying opportunities to enhance projects and processes.
- Address complex technical challenges with innovative solutions and anticipate potential issues to support smooth project execution.
- Build, optimize, and iterate on The RealReal’s Sales & Retail platform, developing tools for sales and retail associates and enabling seamless customer experiences across sales and retail channels.
- Work with Product and business stakeholders to build robust, scalable back ends that support engaging customer journeys and improve platform effectiveness.
Qualifications
- At least 8 years of software development experience.
- Experience with Java and Ruby.
- Proven experience developing, scaling, and maintaining distributed systems.
- Solid understanding of software engineering principles, architectural design, and agile development methodologies.
- Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to work independently on complex issues.
- Effective communication skills, including the ability to convey complex ideas clearly and concisely.
- Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field preferred.
- At least 8 years of software development experience and a track record of successfully shipping consumer- or business-facing products preferred.
- Experience with Elixir is a plus.
- Familiarity with front-end JavaScript frameworks such as React or Vue.
- Familiarity with Gradle and Spring Boot.
- Familiarity with Python and AWS.
- Contributions to open-source projects or a strong GitHub portfolio.
Skills
Experience
At least 8 years of software development experience.
Education
Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field preferred.
Workplace
This position is based in California, California, USA.
Explore jobs in California or in the USA.
Compensation
The base compensation for this position ranges from USD 172,460 to USD 215,575 per annum.
Benefits
Employee Stock Purchase Plan; 401(k) with company match; medical, dental, and vision insurance; paid parental leave; 9 paid company holidays; flexible time off with manager approval. Employees may also be eligible for a bonus program and incentive pay, depending on role.
Culture
A consignment passes through several hands. Authentication specialists examine the item, merchandising teams prepare the listing and client teams work with the person who consigned it.
About Cerulean
Cerulean is the definitive career portal for the global luxury industry. We match exceptional professionals with exclusive opportunities at the world's most prestigious brands. From haute couture and fine watchmaking to prestige beauty, hospitality, and boutique retail, Cerulean centralises luxury employment to help you find the career for which you were destined.
Frequently Asked Questions
The luxury industry is characterised by a diverse and nuanced nomenclature. Esteemed houses frequently employ proprietary terminology, and even within a single organisation like The RealReal, titles may vary across global markets to reflect local conventions. To ensure absolute clarity, Cerulean assigns a standardised, industry-coherent canonical title to every listing. However, it is worth noting that this role is functionally synonymous with «Staff Software Engineer», «Senior Staff Software Engineer», «Staff Application Engineer», «Staff Software Developer», and other variations. Our sophisticated search architecture anticipates these variations, ensuring that inquiries using related terms will seamlessly yield the exact roles you desire.