In 2016, CEO Andreas Palm and creative director Christian Larson joined forces to launch Stockholm-based CDLP to make men’s underwear matter. “We had never cared about underwear ourselves, because there wasn’t much to care about,” Palm said on the latest episode of the Glossy Podcast. “So we designed for ourselves, in the beginning; we made a product we wanted to wear.” Doing so quickly caught the attention of fashion authorities including GQ and Esquire in the UK, which wrote about the “new masculinity” and sustainability the brand was bringing to the category, Palm said. In addition, retailers including Mr. Porter and Barneys showed early interest by placing orders. In the seven years since, CDLP has expanded to product categories including sleepwear and swimwear. It’s also grown substantial businesses in international markets; the U.S. drives a majority of its sales, and it’s recently launched in the Middle East.  This year, as the brand approaches profitability, the founders have their sights set on growing the women’s category, which launched in September.

Co-founded by Eleanor Haycock in 2016, L.A.-based Year of Ours is managing to differentiate itself in the crowded activewear category. That’s thanks, in part, to its fashion influence, which has earned the brand celebrity fans including Tinx and Hailey Bieber. The brand’s head designer, Alejandra Hernandez, is also a fashion stylist, for celebs including Britney Spears and Sza. Despite no outside investment, Year of Ours has managed to own and operate a factory, double its revenue every year and expand to new product categories, including skiwear and comfort-focused Body apparel. Swimwear is next.  Haycock and Hernandez said they also want to ramp up the brand’s direct-to-consumer sales, which currently make up just 20% of the business. And that’s just the start of their in-the-works plan for the next era Year of Ours. "There is a heavy weight on us [to figure out] where we want to go, because we know there's so much potential, and we've learned so much. And we've been a bit relaxed on progressive growth,” Haycock said on the latest episode of the Glossy Podcast. “So we're at that point where we're like, 'OK, let's do this now. We have both feet on the ground, we're profitable, and we have a great team. Let's go.' But, we're asking, 'What does that look like?' And we're saying, 'Let's make sure we do it right.'"