Mallory Ottariano’s first decade operating a small activewear brand taught her that making apparel in the USA is more difficult than it sounds.
2020 and 2021 were especially difficult years for Missoula, Montana-based Youer. In one instance, several hundreds of thousands of dollars of apparel had been pre-sold to customers, but was ruined by her manufacturer, and she had to refund the orders. Then COVID disrupted the operations of other manufacturers she was working with, and problems persisted at the other factories she tried – problems that she estimates have cost her about $1 million.
“So in 2021, I was like, ‘I’ve got to build a factory,’” Ottariano said in an interview with The Daily. “This is the only way we’re going to survive.”
Ottariano had been sharing the ups and downs of building a women’s activewear brand with a growing audience online, partly to explain to customers why Youer sometimes didn’t have inventory, why domestically made clothing costs what it does, and how supply chains work. One video, for example, unpacks why one of the brand’s popular Commit Crop Tops, which come in a range of botanical, colorful prints designed by Ottariano, costs $84. Another video, which has more than 200,000 views so far, educates consumers on why it’s impossible to make a T-shirt in the U.S. that sells for $10 – and why Youer’s colorful Trailblazer Cropped Tees cost $48.
Through that process, Ottariano discovered that people appreciated that transparency and it brought them closer to the brand.
Ottariano knew that she wanted to get as much out of a crowdfunding campaign as possible, so rather than using Kickstarter or another service that would take a cut of what was raised, she opted to code the website herself to ensure she reaped the maximum benefits. The rewards she offered supporters were largely intangible, again to keep costs low, such as getting your photo on the wall of Youer’s new home, or the chance to name a new print that the brand was launching.
Youer exceeded its goal of raising $100,000 with the help of 511 backers. But it took a few more years of growing the manufacturing practices in rental spaces before Ottariano found her new spot in Missoula in June 2024. After cleaning up the space, Youer now has a team of seven, and all product development happens in-house, including patternmaking, sampling, and fittings. About 75% of products are made at Youer’s headquarters, and a reliable facility in Los Angeles makes the rest.
Welcome to the Youniverse
Youer’s manufacturing facility is lovingly referred to as the Youniverse, which feels accurate. Nestled on a quiet residential street, the entryway of the building also serves as a shop and a small fitting room to showcase what’s new and facilitate pick-ups from customers. There’s a small area adjoining that space for computer work, and the larger production floor is tucked behind the front rooms.

Youer’s entryway welcomes visitors with new merchandise and a fitting room. Photo by The Daily.
The community that’s supported Youer was invited for a big celebratory launch just over a month ago, and that community’s presence is everywhere you turn in the building. As promised, photos of supporters line the walls in the entryway, and a massive, colorful mural in the large production area was painted by one of Youer’s Instagram followers, Sophia Mathis, for free. The team acid-stained the floors themselves.
“We’ve crowdsourced everything, basically,” Ottariano said.
Youer is still working out its production processes for the brand’s schedule, which includes producing one new product each month. Most pieces are cut in Los Angeles and arrive on a palette. Then the pieces are placed in bins to start going through production by the three members of the sewing team. Youer’s sales are almost entirely direct-to-consumer, so there’s also an area dedicated to fulfilling online orders, which Youer does from the facility. There’s also a lounge decorated with vintage furniture for meetings and lunch breaks.

Youer’s sewing team was hard at work on the brand’s new blazers. Photo by The Daily.
Finding skilled sewers or training new sewers is one of the hardest parts, Ottariano said. There’s been a lot of turnover in Youer’s first year as a manufacturer.
“Our sewers are really talented and on their toes because they’re working with different equipment and different types of materials every few weeks,” Ottariano said.
Youer’s Designs and Looking Ahead
After more than a decade, Ottariano has solved many of her manufacturing woes. But the designer, who designs the prints and some fabrics in-house, still has issues sourcing materials. The tariffs on materials from Polartec, for example, which is used to make some of Youer’s most popular products, such as the Treasure Dress, are high, and add to the cost to the customer.
But Ottariano is still channeling those challenges into ways to connect with consumers, by sharing the behind-the-scenes details of the fashion and outdoor industry to her audience online.

A not-quite-finished Superpower Blazer by Youer in the color Juicy. Photo by The Daily.
And in the meantime, Youer and her team are producing new styles, like the brand’s stretchy, bright magenta pantsuit, which can be worn just about anywhere, and for doing anything.
When Ottariano reflects on what she’s achieved with the support of her community, that support is driven by something bigger than apparel.
“It’s so much more than clothes,” Ottariano said. “It’s about an industry being revived. It’s incredibly special. And it is pretty wild that a crazy idea I came up with in my basement turned into this.”
Kate Robertson can be reached at kate.robertson@emeraldx.com.