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One of the reasons we founded Latitude was to help support female founded (and led) outdoor brands. We don't stock all of the brands listed below, but if you are interested in supporting smaller, women led businesses then we hope you enjoy our guide. For smaller businesses and start-ups a like, share and follow counts too and inspires founders, like us, to continue through the ups and downs of running a business. Oh and they all make fantastic gear too, so if you are looking to update your wardrobe, with a beanie, a base layer, some new bike shorts or even some skis then check them out!
Founded by Annie Richmond in 2013 BBCo is a British headwear brand with a great range of beanies, bobble hats and caps for both Men and Women. Annie was inspired to set up BBCo after spending Winter seasons in the Mountains and finding that beanies were the ultimate (and necessary) accessory, and just about affordable on a seasonairres salary! When we first started talking to Annie what really came through was her passion for making a quality product and drive to become a more sustainable brand. Annie continues to work relentlessly to find more sustainable manufacturing options. and 60% of the current collection is made from either recycled materials, ethical wool or made in the UK.
BBCo's slouchy beanies are our best selling Women's beanie, we routinely get stopped and asked where our Elan beanie is from; plus it has to be the warmest beanie on the market, made with a chunky knit and lined to keep you extra warm!
Designed and photographed in the UK we love the outdoor vibes and imagery ever present on BBCo's social feeds.
Follow BBCo Headwear on Instagram
The Elan Beanie by BBCo £30.00
Founded by Henrietta Holderness, this British brand makes beautiful base layers for all your mountain activities. H Holderness fills a gap in the market for stylish, but technical base layers allowing for that seamless transition from snow to apres - without getting changed! Their range includes a Winter and Spring weight baselayer so you can pick the warmth that's right for you. We love their designs & watch this space; we're hoping to find a home for a few in Winter 20/21!
Our current favourite style is the Papillon Base Layer Set; in a Spring weighted fabric this is ideal for warmer Mountain days. Go full Papillon, or pair with Snow Leopard leggings or top!
Follow H Holderness on Instagram
Founded by Jen Gurecki in 2013 Coalition snow is unapologetic in it's promotion of female independence and strength and has a strong female voice in a male dominated snow sports industry. Coalition Snow is THE ONLY Women's ski and snowboard brand. Based out of the USA, we love the creative designs and whilst we are yet to gear test these beauties (we'd love to do a review if you fancy sending a pair our way Jen!), the ski press has been only positive in their performance and they are now stocked in Evo and Rei, two US retailing giants.
Like most of us, we receive a lot of newsletters these days, but one of the few we actually sit down with a cuppa and read end to end is the Coalition Snow newsletter "Lady Parts" coupled with extras from their in-house publication Sisu magazine and Juicy Bits podcast the brand is jam packed full of interesting content. Make sure you sign up on their website!
Before we wrap up on Coalition snow, we should also mention that they make apparel too. Their "Shred the Patriarchy" T-shirt is our current favourite, but with artist collabs and t-shirt design comps there is regularly something new.
Follow Coalition Snow on Instagram
Coalition Snow Skis and Snowboards from $499
Launched in 2018 by Michelle and Donna, KANDESENT seeks to fill the gap in the market for Women's specific cycle clothing. They have a small, but perfectly formed, range of technical cycle gear including short sleeved, sleeveless and tank top cycle jerseys and technical cycling shorts too. As cyclists themselves they have obsessed over the details like chafe free seams and silicon grips around the waist and leg bands. But what sets KANDESENT apart from the competition is the fun, bright prints such as their Flutter print and Butterfly Camo. If you are a female cyclist looking to stand out on the roads this summer, definitely check the brand out!
Originally founded as a multi-sport online community, Tribe Sports is now run by Emma Reid and retails exceptional quality performance running gear. With a background in fashion Emma has overseen a transition to putting sustainability at the heart of the business. Their website is refreshing, in an industry where greenwashing is rife, the Tribe Sports website clearly details where products are 100% recycled or partially recycled. Setting themselves apart from many of their competitors currently claiming a "sustainable" collection only to find less than half of the fabric is made from recycled or sustainably produced fabric. Based in the UK Tribe Sports is a part of the UK running community, from Park Run sponsorship, the brand now supports local plogathons, inspiring runners to collect rubbish as they run.
We've been wearing their running gear for years, yes we still even have a pair of their very first running capri's; our current favourite though is their Anatomic Hoodie, which is super lightweight and perfect for Spring or Autumn runs.
Follow Tribe Sports on Instagram
Tribe Sports Anatomic Hoodie £63
You've got to admit, finding really great Women's Mountain Biking gear is not easy! Wild Rye have come along to fill that void! Their mission states "To bring women beautiful and technical mountain apparel that Inspires confidence and gets more women outside." But their business is more than just apparel, co-founded by Cassie Abel Wild Rye are also helping to empower Women in the industry too, with the launch of Women-Led Wednesday bringing together female led brands to encourage people to "shop women" creating a more gender balanced economy.
The Wild Rye Women's Mountain Biking collection includes printed bike shorts, tank, short and long-sleeved tees and plus the Women's Chammy short too.
Our pick is the Freel - Women's Bike Short available online for $119
Whilst Nikita is no longer an independent business, being acquired by first Amer Sports and then a Singapore based investment group (CRN Pte Ltd) we've included Nikita in this blog for the story of Heida Birgisdottir, the original Nikita founder who's ethos still permeates the brand today. Noticing the progression in Women's Snowboard hard goods but a lack of female focused apparel she decided to start her own brand. Despite advice that a Women's only brand would not work Heida continued to prove the bigger brands wrong.
We love how Nikita still produce quality Women's Snowboard clothing today and continue to support the female grassroots snowboard community with events such as G.W.R.
Our favourite Nikita Snowboard Jacket has to be the Hemlock the 19/20 season Jacket is currently available on our site for £100 but we only have 1 left!
Swedish brand Eivy was founded by Anna Vister in 2009 when the snowboarder and fashion designer took Women's base layer design to a new level. Their original design with a built in neck gaiter plus a whole host of other technical features can still be found in their collection today. We love their fun prints and with great design is always a go to piece of kit for a day on the Mountain.
More recently they have expanded their range into mid-layers, beanies and socks and increased the proportion of recycled content in their apparel too.
You will not be disappointed with their 2020/21 collection - watch this space!
Eivy Blue Flower Base Layer Top £59.99
Alex Feechan, a Scottish fashion designer, founded Findra to deliver high performance, comfortable yet attractive outdoor clothing to active Women. Findra has now won several awards including the VIBES 2019 small business Scotland Award in early 2020 and launched a Mens collection.
The collection embraces rich colours and centres around the use of Merino Wool, known for both it's sustainability and technical performance in outdoor clothing.
We love the Caddon Merino Cowl Neck Top available in eggplant, charcoal and navy colourways in sizes 6 to 18. The Cowl neck and attention to detail set this product apart in the style department - it would look just as good on the hill as it would for a post run coffee!
Findra Caddon Merino Cowl Neck Top £100
And Finally
That brings our blog on Female Founded Outdoor brands to a close; we are always looking for more and would love to add to this list, so if you become aware of a brand we have missed please let us know hi@thelatitude.life.
Lastly, we would be grateful if you could share this blog with as many females that love the outdoors as possible; together we can drive change in this industry and support those that are leading the way in women's outdoor clothing product design and development and taking on an industry dominated by big brands!
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