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Planks is a movement of humans creating change through skiing.
Planks was founded to share our passion for the outdoors and the planet, by ethically producing technical ski clothing and streetwear that stands out from the crowd. The vision for Planks is to become a key player in the outdoor industry by doing things differently. Whether it be from a product, design, or sustainability perspective, everything we do is charged with passion and purpose.
The mountains bring together obsessive riders, roamers, and revellers. Our mission is to build this global community, all bound by shared vibes and hooked on riding.
KEY INVESTMENT HIGHLIGHTS:
- Exciting/purpose driven British brand, uniquely bringing together urban culture influences of Manchester with a deep understanding of skiing and the mountains.
- Our Managing Director, Franck Waterlot (ex GM of Burton Snowboards, EMEA), is personally investing in this round on the same terms as investors. Franck leads a talented and passionate staff and professional athlete team (including Olympians James “Woodsy” Woods and Kirsty Muir) built around shared values and purpose of Jim Adlington, our inspirational founder.
- 65k customers with a core dedicated customer base of over 2k “FUSS” loyalty members, activated through purposeful and ski related missions, creating UGC on social media.
- Omni channel distribution, selling direct to consumer online (45% YoY growth) and via our flagship store in Val d’Isere, supported by strategic wholesale partners such as Snow and Rock, Ellis Brigham and ASOS (£700k of pre-orders booked for AW23).
- Robust and scalable supply chain with honest and ethical production, utilising recycled and organic yarns through 95% of the collection, over 2m waste plastic bottles recycled to date.
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OUR VISION
Founded by Jim Adlington, Planks has a unique grassroots heritage as a British ski brand born in Val d’Isère, designed in Manchester and tested in the mountains. This blend, combined with an obsessive passion for skiing, makes for high performance, sustainable gear, which expresses the culture of one of the coolest cities in the world. Beyond product, Planks is an ever-growing global community bound by engaging experiences and shared vibes.
Our vision to show freeskiing culture to the mainstream market has become a reality. Planks’ authentic connection to its customers has enabled it to establish market share in the ski industry and beyond. Planks has credibility in the core ski market and is proving it can play in the lifestyle space, with the success of commercial accounts, such as ASOS.
OUR STRATEGY
Our strategy is to create multifunctional gear to enjoy mountain sports and everyday life. The urban-outdoor lifestyle is a high street trend, we believe this is where we can have continued success. It’s owning the customer who skis, bikes, climbs, hikes, goes to festivals and explores the cities.
OUR TEAM
We are a movement of humans creating change through skiing.
Our team are passionate about the brand’s purpose and what we stand for. Our founder, Jim Adlington is an ex-Pro-Skier, bringing wealth of contacts, credibility, and market knowledge having previously been sponsored by Vans, Oakley, Salomon and Patagonia. With Franck Waterlot as Managing Director, (previously GM of Burton Snowboards, EMEA), we couldn’t be more excited to execute on our plans for growth.
OUR PRODUCT
We have a distinct range of eco-conscious, technical outerwear and streetwear for skiers already to market, and a roadmap for multifunctional ranges for all seasons. Our established partnership with leading product agency “Ginkio” and having our Co-founder based in S.E. Asia means we’re well equipped to deliver.
We are committed to continuously reducing the impact our business and product has on the environment. Incorporating “GOTS” organic or “Repreve” recycled yarn in c.90% of our collection, has resulted in the recycling of c.2 million waste plastic bottles to date. We have taken the POW (Protect Our Winters) pledge to reduce carbon emissions 50% by 2030 and be NetZero by 2037. In addition to this, since launching our partnership with Eden Reforestation Projects, we have planted 15k trees to date, forecasting a further 20k in the next 12 months.
OUR BUSINESS
We have an omnichannel distribution, selling D2C via our website, our Val d’Isère Store and via B2B distribution and retail partners.
Our D2C website has grown 50% on prior year and represents c.60% of revenue, with sales to 46 countries in last 12 months, 68% intake margin. We are acquiring customers profitably with 1st D2C order providing positive net contribution and a CLV:CAC ratio of 4.5.
We have established B2B partners: ASOS, Snow & Rock, Ellis Brigham (UK); Blue Tomato, Zalando (DACH); EVO (USA); Torpedo7 (NZ). Our Planks Val d’Isère flagship store provides in resort presence, alongside other specialist retailers across the French Alps: Woodcore (La Clusaz), Ride & Style (Val Thorens), Alpine Sports (Morzine).
