Skip to main content
BoF Logo

Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.

BoF LIVE: Building a DTC Challenger Brand

Parade founder Cami Téllez and Ben Clymer, founder of Hodinkee, join BoF retail correspondent Cathaleen Chen to discuss the challenges of building digitally-native, direct-to-consumer brands capable of chipping away at mainstays’ market share as performance marketing costs rise.
Building a DTC Challenger Brand.
The author has shared a YouTube video.You will need to accept and consent to the use of cookies and similar technologies by our third-party partners (including: YouTube, Instagram or Twitter), in order to view embedded content in this article and others you may visit in future.

Paid advertising on Google, Facebook and other social media no longer provides the obvious path to growth it once did for direct-to-consumer brands. Fashion entrepreneurs need a new playbook to launch, scale and differentiate their brands, as they face new regulations and rising costs of performance marketing. Brands like Gymshark, Hodinkee, Mejuri and Parade show market share can be captured by finding a niche positioning and focusing on brand-building basics.

“We’ve seen a complete paradigm shift around brands … it’s about building something with the same emotional range and values as an actual person,” said Cami Téllez, chief executive, founder and creative director of inclusive underwear start-up Parade.

Téllez and Ben Clymer, founder of watch blog-turned-marketplace Hodinkee, join BoF’s Cathaleen Chen on the heels of releasing her case study “Building a DTC Challenger Brand,” to discuss how they leveraged community, content and data to build their brands.

Building a DTC Challenger Brand bannerOpens in new window

© 2026 The Business of Fashion. All rights reserved. For more information read our Terms & Conditions

More from Direct-to-Consumer
How direct-to-consumer brands and retail concepts are reshaping the industry, online and off.

Can Quince Be More Than a Dupe Brand?

New partnerships with A$AP Rocky and celebrity stylist Erin Walsh signal the retailer’s ambitions to be known for more than selling less expensive versions of other brands’ products.


True Classic Launches Women, Kids Lines

The men’s T-shirt maker is introducing a line of tees, hoodies and joggers for women and kids later this month, less than a year after closing its first funding round at an $850 million valuation.


view more
Latest News & Analysis
Unrivalled, world class journalism across fashion, luxury and beauty industries.

What Is Nike Doing With Its ACG Label?

The activewear giant seems intent on turning its nearly 40-year-old niche outdoor fashion brand into a mainstream success. The plan hinges on convincing backpackers and athletes its rugged technical gear can perform just as well as The North Face or Arc’teryx.


Question Time in Paris

It’s not an existential crisis — yet — but Rick Owens and Daniel Roseberry confront some headscratchers in their latest collections.


VIEW MORE
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
CONNECT WITH US ON