Halara is a fast-growing athleisure and lifestyle brand founded in October 2020 by Joyce Zhang, a technologist who has led algorithmic projects at tech companies such as Microsoft and Hulu. By combining advanced predictive analytics to precisely customize products and tap into its social media community, the company has carved out a small but steadily growing niche in the competitive athleisure market.
While New York did not disclose current revenues, Gaby Hirata, global brand president of Halala, revealed that the brand has seen 100 percent year-over-year sales growth from 2020 to 2023, and expects to grow at a similar rate from 2023 to 2024. Halala, which started as a fully D2C brand, is pivoting to open its first pop-up store at 470 Broadway in New York City. The space will be open from 11am to 7pm and will operate from May 31 to June 9. The temporary store experience was designed by Pop Up Mob, a New York-based agency that specializes in developing and executing unique pop-up experiences. The 3,500-square-foot space features unique design elements, including upholstered walls that tell the story of the brand's machine learning strategy and a fireside chat stage that aims to foster a sense of unity and brand engagement among the brand's New York fans. Hirata spoke with Inside Retail about the brand's growth strategy and future plans to expand its brick-and-mortar presence. The Strategy Behind Halala's Success Much of the brand's rapid growth boils down to the question, “How do we forecast and manufacture quantities that are right for our customers to price at?” Hirata says, “A lot of times, we can't do that, which is why brands offer discounts, sample sales, and other price cuts. Sometimes inventory ends up going directly to landfill.” In fact, that's a big part of what attracted Hirata to the brand. Prior to joining the team, he was CEO of Diane von Furstenberg. Hirata says, “When I first spoke with Hirata over coffee, [Zhang]I recalled having a lot of questions about the brand, mostly because I didn't understand and wanted to know why the quality was so good. How can you get that kind of quality for $25? ” “I started my career in manufacturing. [at Ralph Lauren]so I'm my [production] “We understood our cost statements pretty well, and we didn't know how retail pricing worked, so those costs were just nonsense. So we thought, what's the secret to that?” the executive explained to Inside Retail. The executive explained that the machine learning technology Halara uses tracks data from Google Trends, consumer engagement on the site, and responses via the brand's social media accounts, allowing it to determine pretty accurately how much and what type of clothes to produce within a one-month period. Another factor in the brand's success is its social media presence. Halara currently has more than 665,000 followers on TikTok and more than 2 million on Instagram, from which it averages about 10,000 comments per day. From the comments, it can make adjustments to existing products as needed, pick up items it wants, and effectively boost promotions through user-generated content such as try-on howls. What's next for Halara? Hirata revealed that in addition to its New York store, the company plans to open pop-up shops in California, Texas, Florida, and Pennsylvania in the next year or so. Additionally, Hirata noted that the company plans to eventually open permanent brick-and-mortar stores. The ideal wholesale partner for an athleisure brand is Target, enthused Hirata, who worked with the large chain on the launch of the Target x DVF collaboration while at the luxury fashion brand. “I think Target is a great partner to work with and has a pretty large activewear/athleisure department. They also have beautiful stores. I like how Target refers to their consumers as guests, and I think they will help get their guests into our stores.” [company’s] “Space,” the chief brand president mused. Hirata said, “We will always remain a DTC-centric brand because having that business model allows us to be more efficient, keep inventory to near zero, and continue to provide cost-saving options to the end consumer.” But the executive added, “Now in our fourth year of running Halala, we know that millions of customers want a physical touchpoint where they can try on the fit and touch the fabric. So we understand that we need to have retail stores, not for the bottom line because we're in a good position with gross margins, but to have and hopefully create space for our customer base to try on clothes.” [of connection] Ultimately, “Halala's most important goal over the next two years is to expand our clear brand identity and communicate it in a way that creates a shared identity between Halala and our various communities. The aim is to reach out to each community and form a common identity and connection,” Hirata concluded.
