The Business of Fashion
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Parade, the online intimates brand founded in 2018 by then-21-year-old Cami Téllez, is on track to reach $75 million in annual revenue, the company told BoF.
Next up? “Ubiquity,” Téllez said, by way of big-box retail.
Starting this week, Parade will be sold on Target.com and 400 of its nearly 2,000 locations across the US. The partnership is Parade’s second foray into wholesale; last summer, it struck a deal with Urban Outfitters to be sold online and in 25 stores.
“Our ambition is to be the leading underwear brand for all people,” Téllez said. “We’ve established that cult-like following online, and our next phase is ubiquity.”
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Parade is one of many e-commerce-first brands that have pivoted into wholesale in the past year as the pandemic spike in online shopping has subsided. Glossier, for instance, is now sold in Sephora stores and Allbirds offers its wool running sneakers in Nordstrom.
Like those brands, Parade views profitability as a priority these days. Téllez said it has been able to cut its cash burn in half over the past six months “while continuing to grow at a rapid speed.” The company expects to be profitable by the end of the year, or within four years in business.
“The future of DTC is capital light and [partnerships] with retail experts,” Téllez added.
Late last year, Parade tapped former Victoria’s Secret executive Kristen Dolzynski as chief design officer, a signal that the young brand is looking to contend with giants of the industry, including Victoria’s Secret, Hanes and American Eagle Outfitters’ Aerie.
For now, however, Parade remains a fraction of the size of their businesses; in 2021, Aerie generated $1.4 billion in sales.
Still, Parade has managed to capture the hearts — and wallets — of a new generation of young consumers in such a way that most incumbents can only dream of. Through colourful marketing featuring models with a range of body shapes and gender expressions, Parade embodies the self-accepting ethos of Gen Z.
Nordstrom, Tod’s and L’Occitane are all pushing for privatisation. Ultimately, their fate will not be determined by whether they are under the scrutiny of public investors.
The company is in talks with potential investors after filing for insolvency in Europe and closing its US stores. Insiders say efforts to restore the brand to its 1980s heyday clashed with its owners’ desire to quickly juice sales in order to attract a buyer.
The humble trainer, once the reserve of football fans, Britpop kids and the odd skateboarder, has become as ubiquitous as battered Converse All Stars in the 00s indie sleaze years.
Manhattanites had little love for the $25 billion megaproject when it opened five years ago (the pandemic lockdowns didn't help, either). But a constantly shifting mix of stores, restaurants and experiences is now drawing large numbers of both locals and tourists.