Bombas flagship store at 345 Bleeker Street, New York City
Courtesy of Bombas
Bombas, the quality- and comfort-obsessed, mission-driven socks brand, is opening its first owned flagship store in New York City at 345 Bleecker Street. Called a “soft opening” in a nod to the softness its products deliver to customers in everyday essentials like socks, t-shirts, underwear, and slippers, the brand will follow the NYC opening with store launches in Boca Raton and Austin before the end of the year.
In another move to meet customers where they already shop for these basics – about 65% of socks purchases are made in brick-and-mortar retail – it is expanding wholesale partnerships as well. Starting this holiday, Target will carry a selection of Bombas socks, and DSW will become its first retail partner devoted to its growing line of footwear.
“We’re thrilled to welcome Bombas to Target this fall, bringing guests a beloved brand known for its comfort, quality and purpose-driven mission,” shared Gena Fox, Target’s senior vice president of merchandising for apparel and accessories. “As guests look for newness and trusted favorites, Bombas adds even more cozy, feel-good and stylish essentials to discover in Target stores and on Target.com.”
Mission First
Bombas was founded by entrepreneurs Randy Goldberg and David Heath in 2013, as they sought to create a company with real meaning behind it, beyond just making money. They hit upon the core socks idea when they found out that homeless shelter guests were most in need of socks.
They set out to create sock brand with unmatched quality and comfort that could command a premium price to allow a one-for-one donation to shelters. After early fundraising efforts via crowdfunding, friends and family, the pair appeared on Shark Tank in September 2014 and won the backing of Daymond John.
The brand has since gone on to become the most successful venture in the TV show’s history, generating over $2 billion in lifetime sales and donating over 150 million socks, underwear and t-shirts to its 4,000 shelter partners – underwear and t-shirts are the number two and three most requested shelter items after socks.
Given the founders’ mission focus, the more successful the company is at selling socks and other products, the more successful it can be in fulfilling its mission.
Enter former Equinox Media, Under Armor and Express executive Jason LaRose, who joined the company as president in July 2024. In less than a year, Heath turned over the CEO reins to LaRose in May and moved up to executive chair.
“We’ve reached a size and scale that is beyond my expertise,” Heath freely admitted in an interview on CNBC. “So when I looked at someone with Jason’s background…having that tried and true experience is what will set Bombas up to succeed for the next chapter. I feel more comfortable having someone with Jason’s experience in the driver’s seat.”
LaRose’s initial mandate was to grow Bombas’ brick-and-mortar footprint. The new company-owned stores and strategic wholesale partnerships are a major step in that direction.
Walk Before Run
Unlike other successful digitally-native brands that may have expanded too quickly into owned-retail stores – Allbirds, Bonobos and Casper come to mind – or Toms, with its original buy-one-give-one model that it was unable to sustain, Bombas has followed a walk-before-you-run path.
LaRose describes the company’s growth plan as very deliberate. After amassing undreamed of success selling socks online, followed by strategic product expansions into other daily, next-to-the-skin essentials, it launched in wholesale about six years ago with Dicks and Scheels focused on its athletic offerings and Nordstrom for its more fashion-forward dress socks.
“When you’re selling a $15 sock, customers sometimes want to see and touch the product before they make the purchase,” he shared, and inevitably, once they make that first purchase, they come back for more.
Currently, wholesale accounts for less than 10% of revenues and the aim is to grow it to about 20% over the next few years. Target is a good fit for its socks and with DSW, which LaRose calls the expert in footwear retail, the company expects continued expansion of its slippers and casual everyday slides business. After entering the category in 2021, footwear already accounts for about 20% of company revenues and LaRose sees only growth ahead.
“Our customers have trusted us for comfort around feet for some time now and they just keep asking us to do more and more,” he said.
Built To Last
With the expanded wholesale partnerships and its own flagship stores, where it can bring the full Bombas experience to life for customers, the company is determined to continue its purposeful, deliberate growth plan in the years ahead.
“We founded Bombas in 2013 after learning that socks are the #1 most requested clothing item at homeless shelters, and trying to help solve that continues to guide everything we do. Our customers consistently share that our one purchased = one donated mission is one of the top reasons they choose Bombas,” co-founder and chief brand officer Goldberg said.
“Expanding our retail presence creates new opportunities for people to engage with our product and mission in person, helping us reach more customers, drive growth, and ultimately, expand our impact,” he concluded.
