Dive Brief:
- Continuing its physical store opening plans, Vuori, a DTC activewear brand, has opened its first flagship store in New York City's SoHo neighborhood, according to a Thursday press release.
- The 5,000-square foot store is the brand’s first flagship location on the East Coast and will offer the brands men's and women's apparel. The SoHo store comes on the heels of the company opening a location in London last month — its first physical storefront outside of the U.S.
- The company said it plans to open more than 100 stores over the next five years. In addition to the U.K. and the U.S., Vuori is also reaching customers via e-commerce, wholesale and retail channels in Canada, China, Singapore, Hong Kong and the Middle East, among other regions.
Dive Insight:
Vuori's brick-and-mortar expansion follows its funding round a year ago. In mid-October, the DTC brand raised $400 million from the SoftBank Vision Fund 2, pushing its valuation to $4 billion. The company said it planned to use the funds for its physical store openings in the U.S. and to reach customers in Europe and the Asia Pacific region.
Earlier this year, Vuori began fulfilling its international expansion goals. The company announced in April that it had begun selling to customers in France, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, Australia, the U.K. and Canada. It also established wholesale partnerships with retailers like Barry's Boot camp, Selfridges and Bever.
In addition to supporting its growth efforts, the funding from SoftBank also went toward rewarding early shareholders, Vuori CEO Joe Kudla told Retail Dive in November 2021. At that time, Kudla said the company hadn't decided whether to go public yet.
Like other activewear brands, Vuori store locations aren't solely about selling products; they also are gathering spaces for hosting yoga classes, local art shows and other events. The company said in its announcement that it will host those kinds of gatherings at its New York location. Meanwhile, other brands like Lululemon and Beyond Yoga have experimented with using stores as customer workout spaces.
"We couldn't be more excited to bring Vuori to New York and such an incredible location," Joe Kudla, founder and CEO of Vuori, said in a statement. "SoHo has long been one of New York's most desirable shopping hubs, as it's the perfect mix of being a place where people live and work, but also where they come to shop, discover new brands and have fun. We look forward to serving new and existing customers and bringing locals together in ways that celebrate and inspire a healthy, happy life."
