The insane popularity of a single sweatshirt has forced its maker to expand into four new factories within the last year just to meet the soaring demand.
The zip-up hoodie, made by San Francisco startup American Giant, costs $89. It had been on the market for 10 months when a December 2012 Slate article declared it “the greatest hoodie ever made” and suddenly sales exploded.
The pace of growth was so rapid that backorder waits grew to as long as four months. But people continued placing orders regardless of the wait.?
At the time, American Giant had only one factory in Brisbane, Calif. The company has since expanded into a factory in Los Angeles and three more in rural North Carolina, just outside Raleigh.?
“We’ve been chasing demand the entire year,” American Giant CEO Bayard Winthrop said in an interview with Business Insider. “In September, we were finally back in stock ? and then the rate of buying went up by four times.”
With its expansion into new factories, the company has begun selling t-shirts, sweatpants and a women’s line. In the meantime, demand for the sweatshirts hasn’t slowed. The hoodie is currently sold out of most sizes and colors.
?We are absolutely throttled down on manufacturing,? Winthrop said. ?We are maxing out all of our capacity at all of our factories. As much as they can give us, we are taking.?
So what’s so great about this hoodie, anyway?
Read more at?BUSINESS INSIDER
