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Swimwear-maker Andie Acquires Richer Poorer, L.A.-based Essentials Label

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Andie, the direct-to-consumer swimwear brand, has acquired California-based essentials label, Richer Poorer. The deal marks Andie’s first acquisition and is a major step toward the company’s desire to become a multibrand, multicategory lifestyle business.

Andie, which was founded in 2017 by chief executive officer Melanie Travis, has developed a business of high-quality one-piece suits designed for all body types. Last year, Travis began exploring category expansion into seasonless, everyday apparel that aligned with the brand’s coastal chic aesthetic, and she learned that Richer Poorer, a brand that she had admired, might be open to being sold.

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“When I saw that possibility, it immediately clicked,” Travis said. “I’ve been a longtime fan and customer, and the brand had everything we were envisioning — elevated basics, comfort, wearability and a loyal customer base. It felt like a natural extension of Andie.”

Richer Poorer was founded in 2010 by Iva Pawling and Timothy Morse and became known for its effortless wardrobe stapes. In 2023, the brand was acquired by mall chain Francesca’s. Two years later, Francesca’s was ready to part ways, and Andie stepped up.

With this acquisition, Richer Poorer will now be folded into Andie’s high-performing e-commerce operations, enabling the brand to better leverage data to drive customer acquisition, optimize inventory and accelerate growth.

The price of the acquisition wasn’t disclosed.

Travis emphasized that Richer Poorer will continue to operate as a stand-alone brand, with its identity and product focus intact. “Customers won’t see big changes — we love the brand and the product, and that’s why we bought it. But we’re going to bring fresh energy through a sharper merchandising lens, a best-in-class site experience, fewer stock-outs, and faster fulfillment. What customers love about Richer Poorer will remain, just supported by a stronger operational backbone,” Travis said.

Melanie Travis
Melanie Travis

As part of the integration, each brand will begin to feature select products from the other on their respective websites. “This isn’t about restructuring — it’s about scaling,” Travis said. “We’ve spent eight years building a lean, powerful operation at Andie. Now we get to apply that model to more than just swim. It’s the next chapter, and I couldn’t be more excited,” Travis said.

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