Acid Running is gearing up.
What’s happening: The London-born premium apparel upstart landed a £1.07M ($1.4M) investment to scale and enter womenswear.
Trippin’. Launching technical men’s gear in 2022, Acid embraces “the pursuit of suffering,” encouraging runners to conquer inner battles and physical rigors.
Mixing socializing and stoicism, it partnered with UK endurance hiking challenge APEX and hosts community runs with local brands and artists.
Gaining support, it notched two consecutive years of 300% growth. Now, it’ll seek to double its audience, designing women’s performancewear with equal grit.
Toughen up. As challenger brands redefine activewear, men still dominate the performance specialty — but momentum is shifting.
While women-focused Oiselle goes big with women’s track event ATHLOS, upstart brands like Aesene, Weasie, and LNDR are helping women feel comfortable pushing their limits.
Extending the high-performance lifestyle, 247 by Represent entered women’s apparel this year. Delayed, NikeSKIMS forthcoming line marries aesthetics and athletics.
Punchline: More than cool fits, Acid Running and others are helping newcomers and pros embody their beliefs — even when it’s a collective acknowledgement that running can suck.
