The Oodie founder Davie Fogarty has invested $250,000 into Suitor, a Sydney-born men’s suit hire brand.
From this investment, Fogarty is expecting a 300% revenue boost in 2024.
Suitor was founded in 2017 by Sydney graduates Daniel Reid and Luke Kyriazis amid a gap in the market for rentable suits for special occasions.
In 2022, the recommerce brand passed $1 million in sales, with the business moving into a warehouse in Alexandria, Sydney.
Fogarty is now aiming to grow Suitor sales from $1.7 million to $5 million in the next 12 months.
“Investing in Suitor is not just about capital,” he said. “It’s about fostering growth and nurturing the incredible potential that Daniel and Luke have to offer.
“Their story resonates strongly with my own - both their successes and challenges - so I am looking forward to helping them shape their path to success.”
As an investor, Fogarty will work closely with Daniel and Luke to improve Suitor’s operational efficiency, product offerings and brand image.
Looking ahead, the brand is expected to launch its own product range of brand-name suits, add on in-house dry-cleaning in the back-end, improve brand imagery and optimise inventory management.
The in-housing of its dry-cleaning operations is expected to save 10% on total operational costs for Suitor, as well as improve quality control.
Meanwhile, Suitor and Fogarty have already created new brand and product photography for online. The imagery includes a photoshoot taken on Fogarty’s Adelaide farm, such as a mock wedding shoot and a men’s lifestyle shoot.
“Davie’s mentorship and support has been incredible so far,” Reid and Kyriazis said. “Strategically, he has emphasised the importance of developing the Suitor brand, while challenging us to raise the bar and accomplish everything at the highest level possible.
“Davie has also emphasised how important customer testimonials and reviews are to building our brand, as well as the need to continue delivering the best customer experience possible.”
Fogarty launched The Oodie in 2018, and has since generated more than 8.1 million unit sales and more than $500 million in revenue.
In 2023, he became the youngest-ever Shark on Shark Tank Australia, where he actively invests in and mentors emerging entrepreneurs.