654: The Hoodie That SAVED Their Business ($5M in 2 Years) | Boys Lie
About this episode
Tori Robinson and Leah O'Malley discuss their journey from a struggling cosmetics brand to a successful apparel line after a pivotal moment with Gigi Hadid.
Tori Robinson and Leah O'Malley launched Boys Lie as a cosmetics brand with 16+ SKUs and generated $250,000 in revenue in year one—against $250,000 in debt. But they discovered customers only wanted the two branded hoodies, not the makeup. Sitting on mountains of unsold inventory and ready to quit, they sent a blind gift to Gigi Hadid. Two months later, Gigi stepped out in their "Boys Lie Goodbye" sweatsuit in a paparazzi moment during her breakup with Tyler Cameron. Demand exploded overnight. They pivoted entirely to apparel and never looked back. In this raw conversation, the co-founders of Boys Lie break down why they'll never do unsolicited celebrity gifting again despite it saving their business, the brutal employee embezzlement that cost them significantly and the financial controls they built to prevent it, and why they turned down a major buyout offer two years ago. What you'll learn in this interview: • How they launched with 16+ cosmetics SKUs but only sold two hoodies • Why they were ready to close shop before the Gigi Hadid moment changed everything • How they sent blind gifts to Gigi Hadid through personal connections at Coachella • Why they waited two months before…
Topics covered
- business pivot
- celebrity influence
- entrepreneurship
- financial challenges
- apparel industry
Keywords
- Boys Lie
- Gigi Hadid
- entrepreneurship
- apparel
- cosmetics
- business pivot
- celebrity gifting
More episodes of The Foundr Podcast with Nathan Chan
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- 653: (Solo) Why Community Is the Most Undervalued Asset in E-Commerce Right Now
- 652: IM8 Founder: What It REALLY Takes to Build a $200M Supplement Brand
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- 650: The Lie About Social Media Growth (And What Actually Works in 2026)
- 649: We Had 3 Weeks Left… This Saved My $35M/Year Company
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