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Outdoor Voices

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Outdoor Voices
IndustryFashion
Founded2013
FounderTyler Haney
Headquarters
New York City Edit this on Wikidata

Outdoor Voices (sometimes just O.V.) is an American clothing company focused on the design and sale of athletic apparel. The company was founded in 2013 by Tyler Haney in New York City, and is now headquartered in Austin.[1] The company's products are sold online.[2] On February 25, 2020, Haney tendered her resignation, and Cliff Moskowitz, the president of a fashion-oriented private equity firm, took over as interim CEO.[3]

History and operations

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The company's founder, Tyler Haney, was motivated to found Outdoor Voices due to a love of sports and athletics.[4] She founded Outdoor Voices in 2013 after studying business at Parsons School of Design.[5] In early 2014, J. Crew selected the Outdoor Voices line for its stores’ "Brands We Love" sections after the line was featured in a London boutique, Garbstore.[1] The company's first store opened in Austin in October 2014 and its first pop-up shop opened in Manhattan in 2015.[6] The company was known initially for their "kits," which included a collection of tops and bottoms that could be mixed and matched for a bundled price.

Over time, Outdoor Voices raised over $9.5 million from investors like General Catalyst Partners. In 2015, Outdoor Voices received $7.5 million in investments to start their active apparel line.[4] In 2016, Haney decided to move the company to Austin, Texas to focus on building a new and a bigger headquarters for the company and hired more employees including some of Haney's friends from high school.[4] Mickey Drexler, the former CEO of Gap Inc. and J. Crew Group, Inc., became the company's chairman of the board in the summer of 2017.[7] As of March 2018, the company had raised roughly $57 million in funding.[8] Lead investors include GV, General Catalyst Partners, and Forerunner Ventures.[8] On April 24, 2018, Outdoor Voices launched a running collection with Hoka One One. They also released a corresponding app called O.V. Trail Shop. The app features the nearest Trail Shops where the new running collection can be found.[9] In 2018, Outdoor Voices launched their first swimwear collection called “H2Ov”.[10]

Outdoor Voices has collaborated with other clothing and exercise-related companies to produce limited run products. Collaborators include the fashion blog Man Repeller, ClassPass, and French fashion label A.P.C.[11][12][13][14]

In February 2020, in an effort to restructure the company, Haney stepped down as CEO. Several executive abruptly departed the company, and an anonymous letter blamed CEO Tyler Haney for the staff exits, calling her "spoiled" and criticizing her leadership. Haney struggled to work with Mickey Drexler, the well-known retail executive who had previously led J.Crew and Gap.[15] By March 2020, the company had "imploded," according to The New York Times.[15] In January of 2020, the company's valuation was $40 million, down from its 2018 valuation of $110 million.[15] Outdoor Voices indicated that there would be an additional 15 layoffs across the company.[16]

In March 2024, the company announced all its stores would close, and that the company would become online-only.[17] On March 21, 2024, former employees confirmed that Outdoor Voices was preparing to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization within the coming weeks.[18]

References

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  1. ^ a b Rogers, Kate (May 3, 2016). "This 27-year-old CEO is taking on Lululemon and Nike". cnbc.com. Retrieved March 20, 2018.
  2. ^ "Outdoor Voices to shutter all of its stores this Sunday". Retail Dive. Retrieved March 17, 2024.
  3. ^ Why All the Warby Parker Clones Are Now Imploding: How venture capital became the most dangerous thing to happen to now-troubled DTCs like Outdoor Voices, Harry’s, and Casper Maya Kosoff, March 9, 2020
  4. ^ a b c Andor Brodeur, Michael (May 2018). "Steady as She Goes". Entrepreneur. 46 (4): 52–57. Retrieved November 4, 2018.
  5. ^ "Inside the Cult Activewear Label For It Girls Everywhere". harpersbazaar.com. October 14, 2016. Retrieved March 20, 2018.
  6. ^ "The Future of Athleisure Is Looking Pretty Chill: Outdoor Voices Opens a Pop-Up in Nolita". vogue.com. Retrieved March 20, 2018.
  7. ^ Brodeur, Michael Andor (October 9, 2017). "Investors Didn't Take Her Seriously. Then She Built Outdoor Voices, Activewear's Next Big Thing". entrepreneur.com. Retrieved March 20, 2018.
  8. ^ a b Thomas, Lauren (March 13, 2018). "Athletic apparel start-up Outdoor Voices raises $34 million in latest round of funding". cnbc.com. Retrieved March 20, 2018.
  9. ^ Feitelberg, Rosemary (April 24, 2018). "Outdoor Voices Gives Shoppers a Jump on Running Collection With AR-Powered Trail Shops". WWD. Retrieved November 4, 2018.
  10. ^ Margaux, Lushing. "Activewear Indie Darling Outdoor Voices Launches Its First SwimWear Collection". Forbes. Retrieved November 4, 2018.
  11. ^ "Man Repeller's Outdoor Voices Collab Includes Chocolate and a Jump Rope". racked.com. June 2, 2015. Retrieved March 20, 2018.
  12. ^ "ClassPass Releases First Apparel Collection With Outdoor Voices". racked.com. December 7, 2015. Retrieved March 20, 2018.
  13. ^ "Five Things T Editors Are Really Into Right Now". The New York Times. September 2, 2016. Retrieved March 20, 2018.
  14. ^ "Outdoor Voices & Teva's Colorful Sandals Are a Summer Must-Have".
  15. ^ a b c Maheshwari, Sapna; Griffith, Erin (March 10, 2020). "How Outdoor Voices, a Start-Up Darling, Imploded". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved March 10, 2023.
  16. ^ Loizos, Connie. "Outdoor Voices founder Tyler Haney says adios altogether to the company amid layoffs". TechCrunch. Retrieved March 9, 2020.
  17. ^ Craighead, Olivia (March 13, 2024). "Outdoor Voices Is Closing All of Its Stores". The Cut. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
  18. ^ "Outdoor Voices Bankruptcy Imminent According to Insiders". Sourcing Journal. March 21, 2024. Retrieved March 22, 2024.
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