The direct-to-consumer business model has born some of footwear’s biggest success stories in the past decade.
But a vertical strategy can only take you so far. And with customer acquisition costs skyrocking an estimated 222 percent from 2013 to 2022 (according to a report from the tech platform Vtex), many digital-native boot brands are looking to wholesale partnerships as a means to increase profits and exposure.
Here, four startups in the work and Western categories share their strategies.
Tecovas
Over its 10-year history, Austin, Texas-based boot maker Tecovas has been a poster child for how to build a strong DTC business, with robust digital sales and 42 branded stores expected by year’s end.
So it came as a surprise when Tecovas announced in August it was launching wholesale. But president and chief executive officer David Lafitte, who joined in 2022 from Deckers Brands, told FN it was always a matter of when, not if, the brand would make the move.
“For our product, it’s important to be in what I call a sit-and-fit environment,” he said. “But there are areas of the country where we’re not likely to have [our own] brick-and-mortar store. These retailers provide a physical place for people to come in and try on the product when they otherwise can’t.”
For phase one, the brand partnered with nine retailers, reaching 36 store locations across 10 states. Lafitte said it is targeting “tastemakers” with authenticity in Western retail, such as family-run stores that have been in operation for generations.
One of the concerns for DTC players entering wholesale is the loss of control over brand image. Lafitte acknowledges that is a reality, but to head off any issues, it vets partners carefully and is sending in a team of associates from its retail stores to offer training and education. Tecovas also provides a menu of point-of-sale items to showcase the product.
“We want to be able to partner with these retailers in a way that brings them into our ecosystem,” he said. “It needs to be kind of a win-win long term.”
Brunt Workwear
Brunt Workwear, based in North Reading, Mass., launched online in August 2020 and made its wholesale debut this past February, partnering with 23 different retailers across the U.S.
Founder and chief executive officer Eric Girouard described it as a “pretty controlled group,” noting that Brunt isn’t working with any national retail chains. “[The launch] was more conservative than we could have gone. And the reason for that was, I wanted to make sure we launched with the right partners.”
To prepare for the move, Girouard hired Christopher Heffernan as president in early 2023. An industry veteran with experience at Keen, Sebago, Timberland and others, Heffernan built out a sales team and helped Brunt hone its assortment based on his knowledge of what retail buyers want.
To that end, Brunt curates a selection of boots for each retailer. And when new items launch, they first appear on the brand’s website to test the waters. “Once we know there’s product-market fit and customers love it, then we go back to those retailers and ask, would you like to add it,” said Girouard. The brand also works closely with them to provide education materials and collateral to be used both online and in-store.
Girouard said the wholesale launch in February exceeded expectations — a bit too much. Retailers sold out of boots faster than anticipated, forcing Girouard and his team to weigh whether to dip into product reserved for the digital business. As a result, Brunt decided to scale back its expansion for this fall, growing its list of partners to just 35 and adding more doors with current partners.
Girouard sees 2024 as a building season for the program. “After this year, we’re going to really see how fast we want to accelerate this,” he said.
Juno Jones
Emily Soloby launched Juno Jones, a Philadelphia-based work boot business, in February 2020 as a DTC brand catering to women. That unique focus soon landed it on the pages of Material Handling Wholesaler, which caught the attention of buyers at Duluth Trading Company, kicking off a continuing partnership. “It wasn’t that we sought them out,” Soloby recalled. “It was just an organic incident — and we were very well matched because we had a product that their customers really wanted.”
Juno Jones has since added other major partners include Lehigh CustomFit, Workwear Safety, Cosawove Workwear and J.J. Keller, with which Soloby collaborated on her first men’s boot style. The brand’s revenue now leans more heavily toward wholesale than direct online.
After growing up working in jewelry retail with her father, Soloby used that experience to navigate the ins and outs of deal negotiations, which she said can be complicated.
“We have different setups with each partner and we have to remain flexible to meet their needs, whether that’s some drop shipping or all wholesale, and we can change it year to year,” she said. “Because we’re an emerging brand, we have that nimbleness.”
Soloby admitted that the brand moved into wholesale earlier than planned, but by growing orders gradually, it avoided major pitfalls. And it’s now benefitting from the many advantages.
“Wholesale is very attractive because you’ve got that economy of product where you’re saving money by ordering it bulk from your factory,” she said. “And, of course, the biggest benefit is just getting your name out there through the retailers.”
Duradero
San Diego, Calif.-based Duradero is the newest DTC brand in this group, having launched in October 2022. The work brand offers a selection of classic, leather, Goodyear-welted boots with an added bonus — each can be resoled for free through a partnership with NuShoe.
Duradero is the brainchild of two footwear industry veterans: chief executive officer Todd Stewardson and chief product officer Jim Musial. Both have decades of experience at companies including Ariat, Timberland, Ecco, Florsheim and Wolverine — knowledge that gives them a leg up as they begin to dip a toe into wholesale. “We’ve got three to six doors that we’re testing right now,” said Stewardson.
But like all startups, Duradero had to first gain a firm foothold. “Our challenge up until now has been breadth of assortment,” said the CEO. “We started last year with one style and by mid-year added a second. Then we started seeing 50 percent month-over-month growth and got the problem of running out of inventory. So our work has been trying to continue to diversify our supply chain and be able to meet the demand.”
Through its early tests with retailers, Duradero found that its resoling service is a strong selling point for consumers looking to stretch their dollars. Its product fit has been well received as well. Another asset, according to Stewardson, is its precise digital scanning tool. “Our scanning device measures your foot and compares it our last and gives you three suggestions for the type of fit you might want,” he said.
Overall, he said the goal is to partner with sit-and-fit-type retailers that can help convey the Duradero message. And by year’s end, Stewardson said the brand’s product assortment will have grown to 50 SKUs, “so that will have us ready to go.”
