Hey guys,

Happy New Year!

If you're like me, the new year is the perfect opportunity to reflect on the previous year and look forward to what's ahead.

I don't like to dwell on the past too much.

Whether it's been the best year of your life, the worst, or somewhere in-between, we just keep moving forward.

But in saying that, it's important to recognise what you have achieved, what you've done, how you dealt with challenges.

So that's what this update is.

I can't cover everything, but it's a quick summary with a look towards what is ahead for this year.

Like most people do every year, I started this year full of optimism. At the backend of 2023, Runly finally started getting a little bit of momentum and continuity.

After an 18-month slog, it was finally starting to move in the direction that I wanted it to go.

We started to build a little bit of trust, and we started building our little community.

But everything changed rapidly when we attended our first event.

I remember it like it was yesterday.

In Feb we activated at our first event. A tiny event, 300 people on the Mornington Peninsula. We woke up at 4am and took off down the highway.

Got there way too early.

I can still taste the nervous excitement of showcasing our brand that we'd worked so hard to not only bring to life, but to start to build a real community and innovative product.

I didn't know what to expect.

We ended up being the only brand or exhibitor there. Just us setup in a local park opposite the registration tent.

Would a single person come talk to us? Would this be the catalyst for recognition and growth?

The truth be told, neither were really true.

We sold a small handful of products that day. Had just a handful of conversations. To be honest, if one lady didn't come over and buy a few running belts while her son was out running, we wouldn't have even covered our petrol.

But I didn't care.

The thrill of being there, being involved in the community, at a grassroots running event representing our own brand was exhilarating.

It was also the first time I saw a Runly Vest being worn by someone I didn't know. What a thrill it was.

Two runners in the field were wearing the Runly Original Vest. I was so proud!

In some ways, it was the catalyst for our growth in 2024.

We went on to attend another 13 events in the year. The time it takes to organise partnerships with events, arrange logistics, product, sponsorship, displays, driving around the state, setting up payment systems and ensuring you have internet in some remote places is intense.

But I can honestly say, that was one of the highlights of my career.

I've never felt so energised or certain about my purpose and where we're going as a brand.

I also realised it's one of the key differences between us and our big international competitors who have a board of directors, middle management and metaphorical walls up.

We actually care.

For 90% of the events we exhibited at this year, there is no 'return on investment'. Big international brands couldn't care less about them.

They exist to serve their shareholders.

There's nothing wrong with that at all, but they just don't care like we do.

We're an independent Australian brand. We're a small business. We're owned by a guy who's passionate about the local running community here in Australia. Someone who's determined to bring independent innovation that improves the running experience.

Certainly one of the highlights of the year for me personally was exhibiting at the Melbourne Marathon, our home town race.

It was truly an incredible experience for me. It was hard work, a lot of planning, long days, early mornings, headaches, smiles, great conversations, lots of coffee and a great sense of pride.

We released a handful of new products this year.

I don't want to be a brand that releases new products for the sake of it, or release them too early. So we really honed in on what we were doing, refined our product, iterated and made continual improvements.

We released the Hybrid Pro Running Vest which was 12 months of planning, testing and iterations. It's been a huge hit, and sold out three times.

To have the Hybrid Pro and R700 as our key running vests is an incredibly strong offering - full of innovation, practicality and passion behind them.

This year is going to be a big one.

We'll continue with our incremental innovations and improvements, continue to build this beautiful community, attend more events and release some exciting new products that are in the works.

It's going to be a big year.

Thanks for your support in 2024. 

2025 is going to be even bigger and more impactful.

Run well,
Robbie

P.S don't forget to join our TEAM RUNLY community on Strava if you haven't already.