Forty Under 40: Matthew Waller

Matthew Waller said he’s sure people who know him well are a bit surprised at the success of Mercari Technologies Inc, a company he co-found along with Randy Laney and Butch Delaney.

“My goal wasn’t to create a huge company,” Waller said. “That just happened. People that know me wouldn’t have expected this because I’m not ambitious in some ways.”

But Mercari has bolted out of starting gates, going from a mere three employees to 75 in just 20 months. All but 10 of those work in the Washington D.C. office.

Waller, 35, said he is most driven by “glorifying God and trying to do his will.” He and his wife host a Bible study each Wednesday and a prayer meeting each Friday. They were also involved in the “planting” of the Christian Fellowship of Northwest Arkansas church in Fayetteville.

Waller, originally from Kansas City, graduated from the University of Missouri in 1988, then received his Masters and his Doctorate from Penn State University in 1993.

He came to the University of Arkansas to be a tenured professor in the College of Business. But Mercari grew so fast he had to vacate that post in a full-time role.

His responsibilities at Mercari include strategic alliances, product innovations and solution innovations.