A logo does not define a brand. But it can define the person wearing it. For better or for worse.
Think of the athletic apparel industry today. You might be an athlete – a runner, skateboarder, rock climber or professional surfer – but to the naked eye, to those who see you whizzing by, you're a sum of the logos tattooed across your chest, forehead and feet. You're that Nike Guy or the Vans Dude, the Marmot Man or the Billabong Bro. When it comes to sporting the status quo, you are what you wear.
"We have a totally different view on what a performance brand can look and behave like."
For YORK Athletics, that's backwards. People aren't clothing, they're individuals. The stuff we wear should enable what we do, not define it.
"Currently our community of creatives, skaters, musicians, surfers and the like is rocking Nike lightweight runners and trainers like the Free and Flyknit when they're not in Vans or Chucks," YORK Athletics founder and CEO Mark McGarry told me. "Whether it's for light performance or styling, it's a default purchase for many of them."
Every one of us has done that, made a "default purchase" because we're told Nike has the best shoes, not because we actually know they're the best for us. YORK Athletics is out to strip away that pretense, offering minimalist athletic shoes that get the job done while leaving plenty of space for you to be you.
"Our guys can't relate to the big brand messaging and just don't feel good about supporting a huge company like Nike, who culturally may have lost touch with the black sheep mentality that we stand for," said McGarry. "We're targeting the true individuals with YORK Athletics Mfg., and we're a small family owned business, which people are stoked to learn about."
YORK Athletic's goal is to redefine what a health and wellness brand looks and behaves like. Their mantra is all about hustle and attitude, having the mental and physical fortitude to embrace being the black sheep, to relish in the challenge of taking on the bigger brands and altering perceptions in the process.
There's a level of audacity there, to be sure. But that's the world McGarry came from before assuming the helm at YORK Athletics. He spent nearly nine years at the helm of PUMA’s largest footwear business. His wife, Elizabeth, a partner with Mark at sportswear development firm MCGARRY&sons in the South End, spent numerous years consulting and designing at Reebok, Puma, New Balance and Nike. Now she's on the operating team at YORK Athletics, too.
It was through MCGARRY&sons that Mark came to know YORK Athletics. Founded in 1946 as Indian Head Shoe Company, the Manchester, NH-based brand was once a name in the performance shoe category and continues to operate as an athletic retailer today. Back in the day, they made custom footwear for professional athletes, including a high-top cleat for NFL Hall-of-Famer Johnny Unitas. (Another claim to fame: manufacturing the first-ever turf shoe, Mark told me.) After tapping Mark and Elizabeth to help resurrect the company, third-generation owners Kyle York (CMO at Dyn) and Travis York (CEO, GYKAntler), co-founders and now board members, saw in Mark the leader of their new vision.
"There's a whole breed of us out there who take our health and wellbeing very seriously. We work our asses off and are insanely disciplined about our passions but don't fit into the rigid categories that these big brands promote. We have a totally different view on what a performance brand can look and behave like and we have the proven track record in the industry to pull this off," said McGarry.
McGarry isn't disclosing any details about the shoes before launch, though I did get to see some prototypes under sworn secrecy. What I can say is the aesthetic and commitment to comfort matches YORK Athletic's black sheep mentality – they're certainly a departure from the "default purchase" you might be used to. Stripped of in-your-face logos, loud colorways and overtly "high-tech" flourishes, they say more by what they're not than what they are.
The footwear industry is notoriously tough to break into. Many brands have tried and failed, including some based here in Boston and New England. But McGarry isn't scared off by all that.
"There's obviously a huge barrier of entry in footwear," he said. "It costs a lot, it's a crazy competitive space and this scares a lot of people away – as it should. There are a lot of new emerging performance apparel brands in the market, which we love. We're confident our strongest entry point with YORK Athletics Mfg. is footwear."
YORK Athletics plans to produce a line of basics too, like T-shirts and hats. It's also going big on content, including its recently unveiled blog, Out Of Step. But perfecting the shoes is their only charge right now. To help, they've tapped a team of accomplished and eccentric brand ambassadors, including: professional boxer Kevin Cobbs; guitarist and front woman of PVRIS, Lynn Gunn; Eddie Wall, a professional snowboarder; Phuc Tran, a Latin professor, tattoo artist and Ted Talk speaker; and artist and cyclist Andrew Peterson.
From the early stages, they also enlisted the advice and mentorship of former Karmaloop CEO Greg Selkoe and VICE Media Chief Digital Officer Mike Germano, who acts as an advisor. To date, YORK Athletics has raised nearly $1M in capital from angel investors and family. Their lead investor is Jay Bush, famous for appearing with his dog Duke in the Bush Beans commercials, who's known for backing family-owned businesses.
"The footwear industry costs a lot, it's a crazy competitive space and this scares a lot of people away – as it should."
Next up for YORK Athletics is getting to market via their direct-to-consumer and strategic retail model, a rollout plan McGarry has been obsessing over for months.
"We are working with a very select and strategic group of retail partners on exclusive offerings and providing our community a place to try on and interact with the product," he said. "This could be a premium streetwear door like Bodega in Boston or a destination running shop like Brooklyn Running Company in NYC."
Whatever the case, that black sheep chip on the shoulder won't be brushed off any time soon.
"We're not scared of the big guys," said McGarry. "We've spent the last decade helping to build most of them."
York Athletics - Welcome to the Family from Ben Fee on Vimeo.
Images provided. | Disclosure: I'm working with Elizabeth McGarry on my apparel startup, Brunswick Park
