16 Nov Shoes.com Acquires Richer Poorer
Shoes.com has acquired the lifestyle sock brand, Richer Poorer.
Founded in 2010 in Southern California, Richer Poorer began offering high quality, well-priced, pattern driven socks with an attention to detail. Since then the men’s sock category has grown by double digits each year. In 2014 alone, the men’s sock category in the U.S.A. grew 14 percent and by 2018 the hosiery market, of which socks are the largest contributor, is expected to reach $25.9 billion. These impressive gains have enabled Richer Poorer to maintain a 100 percent growth rate year over year.
“Richer Poorer has built a culture founded on hard work and hustle, and a brand that resonates with the Shoes.com customer,” said Roger Hardy, Co-Founder and CEO of Shoes.com. “Not only is this acquisition a natural extension of our business but it demonstrates our commitment to expanding our offering into the accessories and apparel categories. Socks have transformed from commodity to fashion statement — this is reflected in the growth of the category and represents an exciting opportunity for us to diversify our product assortment beyond footwear.”
Founded by Iva Pawling and Tim Morse, Richer Poorer was born from humble beginnings to elevate wardrobe basics. The brand’s mission is to make ordinary products extraordinary by taking a unique and balanced approach to design and branding. Richer Poorer products are carried in over 800 retailers internationally including Bloomingdales, Trunk Club and Stag. In addition to socks, the company’s product offering includes underwear and soon to be, basic tees.
“We are thrilled about our new partnership with the Shoes.com team,” said Iva Pawling, Co-Founder and CEO of Richer Poorer. “We’ve been acutely focused on building a strong brand identity, authentic voice and quality product since we launched five years ago. The next growth phase for Richer Poorer requires significant resources, e-commerce expertise and ability to scale, all of which the Shoes.com team brings to the table. We were certain joining forces will allow us to strategically accelerate our growth, while remaining true to the brand ethos we’ve built and continue our home grown operations in San Juan Capistrano, California.”
Shoes.com is the leading online footwear and apparel retailer in Canada. Shoes.com offers a selection of over 500 brands and successfully serves over 8 million customers across the USA and Canada.