Dive Brief:
- Athleisure apparel brand Vuori opened its first retail store in China on May 17 at Shangahi’s Jing’an Kerry Centre, according to a company release.
- The China store represents the brand’s 67th location and follows recent U.S. openings in Scottsdale, Arizona, and Long Beach, California.
- The latest store opening comes after the brand hosted a pop-up in Shanghai last fall, the company said in its announcement.
Dive Insight:
DTC athleisure brand Vuori three years ago announced a plan to open 100 stores worldwide by 2026.
International expansion is a major part of Vuori’s strategy. In addition to the recent Shanghai opening, the brand is planning to open a flagship location on Regent Street in London in October, according to its founder and CEO Joe Kudla, who says it will anchor the brand’s European business.
“We’re approaching our international business with a focus on fewer, bigger key markets like China and [the] U.K., and adopting a true omni-channel approach to connecting with the consumer,” Kudla said in an email. “In 2025, you can expect additional stores in the U.K. and China, and for us to open our first store in the Middle East with a partner. We’ll also continue to expand our partnerships in Korea (with the Shinsegae Group) and Mexico (with Innergy Brands), and build our digital and wholesale businesses across our focus countries.”
Kudla said a major factor in opening stores is being able to connect with the communities in those regions.
“Community engagement has been a critical part of our approach to building our brand from day one,” Kudla said. “Internationally, we see connecting via community outreach as equally critical – the format changes by region, but always has a core foundation in fitness, and is based around our stores. In China, we work with partners like the Pure Fitness group to engage with like-minded consumers.”
Like Vuori, a number of DTC brands in the active space have opted to open more brick-and-mortar locations as a way to reach their customers where they shop. Among them are On, which seeks to open upwards of 100 stores in the coming years.
Vuori, which was founded in 2015, has said it’s been profitable since 2017. In 2021, the company raised $400 million at a $4 billion valuation and announced its lofty store expansion plan at the time. In addition to opening its own stores, the brand early on prioritized wholesale as a way to expand its reach.
Vuori has also been gaining share in the activewear market even as others, like Under Armour, lose share. Vuori increased its share by 1% in the past year, per an Earnest Analytics report from last month. A separate survey by Piper Sandler found that Vuori was gaining additional share with teens, jumping from the 24th choice among teens last fall to the 15th spot.
