A company that started when Kasia Bromley tore up a pair of £5 charity shop jeans to make a pair of skinny outdoor trousers is now aiming to quadruple in revenues to £20m over the next three years. Kasia and her husband Joe started ACAI Outdoorwear in , in 2016, with the aim of providing an alternative to the industry's 'shrink it and pink it' way of designing clothes for women's bodies.
Now, they are looking to expand internationally after generating annual sales of £5.5m. The trousers that Kasia first designed have sold more than 50,000 pairs to date.
As part of its ambitious expansion plans, ACAI will now be extending its product range from mainly legwear to incorporate outer wear jackets, tops, mid layers and accessories. For our free daily briefing on the biggest issues facing the nation .
On international expansion it is targeting the European and America markets. The business currently employs 20, but will be growing its operational team in 2026 to support its international expansion. Earlier this year e-commerce expert Beth Malkin joined as the firm's new managing director, which has seen her playing a key role in devising its new growth strategy.
Once an intern at Alexander McQueen, who helped create Sarah Burton's iconic butterfly dress, Ms Bromley grew disillusioned with high fashion and twice turned down offers to work for Max Mara before taking a role with a º£½ÇÊÓƵ cycling brand.
ACAI sells online and in stores such as Cotswold Outdoors and Snow + Rock.
Ms Bromley said: "We're on an exciting trajectory. We started with brilliant momentum achieving 100% year-on-year growth in our early years, and while we've had a slower period more recently, we're firmly back on track. Our target is to reach £20m turnover within three years, but this isn't just about bigger numbers.
"We're transforming ACAI from a specialist legwear brand into the go-to destination for complete outdoor wear for women. We're expanding into jackets, mid-layers, tops and accessories – everything a woman needs for outdoor adventures.
"The º£½ÇÊÓƵ market is solid, but Europe and North America, where outdoor culture is deeply embedded, represent exciting growth opportunities. We're investing in our team to support this expansion, particularly building capability for US operations.
"I'm really confident I have the right team at ACAI to deliver growth. In January Beth Malkin joined the business as managing director. She brings with her a wealth of experience in e-commerce and retail merchandising from years spent at Arcadia and the Hut Group.
"I've worked really closely with Beth to map out our three-year growth strategy, and I feel really confident we're on the right track. In the short term, we're really focussed on Black Friday which is our busiest trading period. It gives us a really important snapshot of what customers want."
