KATIA SANTILLI & VERA YAN – NIMBLE ACTIVEWEAR
Katia and Vera are two best friends and former housemates who built a multi-million-dollar business from their kitchen table. That business is Nimble Activewear: the trendy, Bondi-based fitness label with the bold colours and prints that you'd recognise from a mile away. The girls had the idea for Nimble back in 2014 when they realised there were no real activewear brands available that were high performing, fashionable and affordable. What started out as a passion project quickly became a thriving business, so much so that very soon after, Katia gave up her career in fashion to work in the biz full-time. The two have a pretty remarkable friendship – when Katia went full-time, Vera continued to work as a lawyer so she could financially support the two of them until it was time for Vera to dive in fully as well. In this episode of lady-brains we sat down with the girls to hear all about how they approached their families for funding, how they use an 'open to buy' to manage stock effectively, and the importance of building a thriving community around your brand.
“In the bank at all times, we have 2 months’ worth of OPEX. If we have 2 shitty months, that ensures we can continue to trade. It’s responsible business.”
“Bricks and mortar is where our brand lives beyond the screen.”
“Our relationship is like a marriage. If our relationship is broken, then the business is broken.”
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