Australian-based The Leisure Collective, home to the surf hardgoods accessory brand Creatures of Leisure, OTIS Eyewear, Sito Shades, and Layday brands, said this week that Manhattan Beachwear is its new distributor for the U.S. market effective Sept. 1.
The company said all key personnel from TLC’s current U.S. team – including existing sales agents – will move over to Manhattan Beachwear to ensure continuity of service.
“We’ve long admired TLC’s brands and the loyal audience they’ve cultivated,” Allan Colvin, founder of Manhattan Beachwear, said in a statement. “With our infrastructure and their passionate team, we see tremendous opportunity to build on their momentum and expand their footprint in the U.S. market.”
Manhattan Beachwear says it’s the leading manufacturer of women’s swimwear in North America. Its brands include La Blanca, Sunshine 79, L’AGENCE, 24th & Ocean, Maxine of Hollywood, Citrus Swim, and private label offerings.
Nathan Omodei, CEO and director of TLC, answered a few questions for us about the move.
Why did your company want to change how it manages its business in the U.S.?
Nathan Omodei, CEO and director, The Leisure Collective: Post-Covid boom, our distribution partner had some issues with rightsizing the business and that led to both operational and financial limitations. There’s nothing more frustrating for good retail partners and sales reps than persistent issues with stock availability when the brands themselves are in a healthy place. It was a mutual decision that we needed to find a partner that could help us where we were falling short.
What does Manhattan Beachwear bring to the table that TLC on its own did not have?
Nathan Omodei: Manhattan Beachwear has more than 35 years of experience in brand building, wholesale distribution, and direct-to-consumer sales. They bring superior operational experience, increased financial capability, and scale, which is what we’ve lacked in our years in the U.S.
One of the most exciting things about this is that most of the existing team and sales reps get to be part of this journey so we have the continuity of channel experience and brand knowledge together with better operations and financial support.
An OTIS Eyewear frame. SESO file photo.
How are the new U.S. tariffs impacting TLC’s business? Do tariffs or other economic conditions have anything to do with this decision?
Nathan Omodei: They’ve been an additional challenge that we wish we didn’t have to deal with. It’s created a lot more work at a supply chain and sourcing level, not to mention the uncertainty around buying and margins.
I would say that the tariffs and difficult economic conditions were the nail in the coffin for the former arrangement. The tariffs reinforced that to be successful you need scale and the financial backing to withstand short-term headwinds – well, we hope they’re relatively short-term!
Sito Shades. File photo courtesy of The Leisure Collective.
How is business overall?
Nathan Omodei: A rollercoaster! In the last five years, we’ve had both our best year and worst year in more than 30 years. Margins are shrinking and operating costs have been rising, so running the business is as challenging as it ever has been. But our brands are in the best shape ever, which gives us both energy and confidence to continue our path.
Our core business in Australia is very solid and we’re starting to see the international regions bounce back from the Covid boom hangover. We feel lucky to have the people that we do working in our brands and the retail partners and sales crew across the regions that support us. I’m glass half full on the future.
Any new big plans in the works for the company?
Nathan Omodei: This U.S. partnership is a big one for us as the U.S. has the biggest market potential. We’re launching some new product innovations for Creatures of Leisure, expanding into Europe, the UK, and hopefully Japan with OTIS, and both Sito Shades and Layday are making good gains with new product launches hitting the market soon. There are plenty of reasons to be optimistic.
