RYU Investment Opportunity

RYU has built the world’s first global, tailored technical training apparel brand for the multi-disciplined athlete. After achieving $253,995 in one month of sales after launch, investors should take note of this opportunity. Q1 2016 represented $265,141 in sales with a 53% margin. This demonstrates clear market acceptance, and with an increase in SKU’s and an aggressive store expansion plan, RYU is considered a distinct, high-growing technical training apparel company.

RYU ‘Beautiful Tough’ – Filling a Massive Gap in Technical Training Apparel (Brand)

Investors should understand that RYU is not attempting to reinvent the athletic apparel space. RYU wants to create a category within a category, ‘urban athletic’. RYU believes it is capitalizing on an underserved male demographic for urban fitness clothes, while also actively enhancing the quality for woman apparel. RYU sells athletic technical apparel with proprietary IP, and has ambitions to be the world’s number one multi-discipline performance training & fitness brand in the world. Its team of industry veterans includes those who have experience at brands such as Lululemon, PolarTec, MEC and Arc’teryx.



Marcello Leone, Directors & Management own approx. 32% of RYU
CEO Marcello Leone has been instrumental in creating the RYU DNA. Leone is an all-in entrepreneur and proven retail business maven. Leone and his family own 19.8% of RYU. Just in April, 2016, Marcello increased his equity position by $400k to demonstrate his confidence in the long-term success of the brand. Leone grew up in high-fashion retail and worked in all facets of ‘Leone,’ a boutique high-end retail firm. The family has excellent contacts in the fashion industry in North America.

Aggressive Growth Phase – The New RYU

• By 2019, RYU plans to redress one million athletes with sales forecasts exceeding $100m
• 17 Canadian Locations planned. Nine stores expected by the end of 2017
• Second Canadian Location revealed in Summer 2016 on Robson Street in Vancouver
• 100 stores worldwide by 2025
• E-Commerce expected to represent 50% of revenues within 4 years
• Sold 4681 units and $253,995 in one month from launch to Dec 31, 2015. $265,141 in Q1 2016.

Current management of RYU took over in Aug 2014 and worked diligently for the first year before launch on revamping the brand and operations. The previous RYU brand was tailored towards the MMA athlete, which became an exhausted space. From Aug 2014, management has been fire-selling old inventory and has developed a unique DNA and building the New RYU – The world’s first Tailored. Technical. Urban Athletic. Apparel Company.

Recent Developments

RYU Closes a $2.7M Private Placement above Market Price
The closing of this second tranche of financing consisted of 11,934,821 Units at a price of $0.20 per Unit for gross proceeds of approximately $2.4 million. These proceeds, when combined with the previously announced first tranche of 1,595,850 Units for proceeds of $319,170 that closed on April 13, 2016, result in a total of 13,530,671 Units for aggregate gross proceeds of approximately $2.7 million.  Each Unit consists of one share and one warrant exercisable above $0.50 for a period of three years.

Q1 2016 Financial Results for ‘The New RYU’
The main relevance of these financials is that they represent the “new” RYU, with no older inventory product sales. This is a true representation of the team and brand put together by Marcello Leone. Revenues during this period were $265,757 with gross profit margins of 53%. I am particularly impressed by the margins, showing the market understands and is willing to pay for the premium nature of the apparel. Also, considering this was the first three months of the ‘new’ RYU, $265,757 in revenues shows clear market acceptance and I believe can quickly scale up after more establishment from the flagship location and new locations. Canadian sales represented 93.5% and U.S. sales were 6.5% in the quarter.

• From Nov 27, 2015 (launch) to Feb 29, 2016, the company achieved $432,121 in sales showing a clear early growth pattern. This was accomplished with only 15 SKU’s for men and 20 SKU’s for woman. These revenues indicate early market validation and with an increase in SKU’s from high-quality apparel articles, there is considerable upside revenue potential.
• Approximately $1.1M of loans were paid out in restructuring the company. Most of these loans were paid in RYU stock and were agreed at $0.25 per share, when the stock was at $0.21 – a premium paid by creditors for shares. These transactions show confidence from creditors as they are willing to opt for equity in the company.

RYU Selected for Goop Pop-up and Online Shop
The Goop pop-up shop is a carefully curated shop of beauty, fashion, food and lifestyle products. RYU products selected for Goop were deemed under the ‘Beautiful Tough’ mantra. The pop-up shop ran from May 5th to 22nd. CEO Marcello Leone:  "This gives RYU the opportunity to showcase our brand with a top retailer and style maker in the USA. They chose to curate and sell our most innovative pieces. We are looking forward to the collaboration and partnership with this amazing label."

RYU Apparel Presented Silver A'Design Award for Excellence in Garment and Accessory Design for ‘Quick Pack’
The Fashion and Travel Accessories Design category recognizes world-class products, prototypes, and/or concepts exhibiting exceptional form, function, innovation and aesthetics. The awards are decided by a panel of international media, established designers, leading academics and prominent entrepreneurs and are presented each year in Italy.



Created by RYU's talented design team, RYU's Quick Pack is designed for athletes by athletes to work for all parts of life including to and from home, the gym, and work. The bag's sleek aesthetic contrasts a muted exterior with shiny interior, artfully capturing the brand's 'Beautiful Tough' mantra.

RYU Apparel Secures Second Brick-and-Mortar Retail Location
Situated in the heart of the Robson corridor, Vancouver's most established retail strip, the new store will be located at 805 Thurlow Street, adjacent to retail anchors Banana Republic and Aritzia. Slated to open in the summer of 2016, the retail space spans approximately 1,100 square feet and will be designed with the same industrial, yet modern aesthetic as RYU's flagship store, which opened in November 2015.

"After initial success with our flagship store in Kitsilano – the athletic hub of the city – Robson was the next logical location," said Marcello Leone, CEO, President and Chairman of the Board for RYU. "As Vancouver's premiere shopping destination it attracts shoppers from all corners of the city and beyond."

RYU Apparel Wins WGSN Futures Award

Acknowledging world-class fashion destinations, the 'Best Store' category takes into account product offer, in-store experience, customer service, in-store displays and retail innovation that heighten and engage customer interaction. Recognized not only for a vintage, industrial design that artfully captures the brand’s ‘Beautiful Tough’ mantra, RYU was also commended for its ability to cultivate community within its flagship store through features such as a pop‐up nutrition bar and second‐floor training facility.

"As a relatively new brand, RYU is honored to be recognized amongst long-standing international retailers who have excelled in this category for a number of years." – Marcello Leone

RYU Apparel Finalist for Carry IV Award
Carryology is a website driven by designers, retailers and overall bag enthusiasts who test and review carry gear for "fitness of purpose". They study construction, innovation and overall functionality for bags that transport the important pieces of our day-to-day lives. These are people who actively use and test bags and backpacks in both urban and outdoor environments, looking at all aspects of their design to confirm maximum performance and quality combined with modern style and versatility.

According to Carryology, "Labelling Ryu as 'Arc'teryx for the gym' would be under-selling their early achievements. Despite the obvious DNA of former bird employees, RYU are working hard to redefine formats and approaches, including with the Locker backpack. A novel drop-front opening allows for great access and doubles as a portable locker, perfect for flying by the gym. Minimalist patterning creates visual interest. And a great mix of fabrics adds some suave office appeal."

Forbes.com Spotlight

Marcello and RYU were given a spotlight on Forbes.com by the number one sports apparel writer in North America, who had been avidly watching the company for the last 14 months. Marcello commented “Many brands are created every day, but to get to that global level, they need both sector and public recognition, and that’s incredibly hard to get. It’s nice to see these industry heavy hitters so enthusiastically backing us.”

RYU Goals & Plans

Overall, RYU wants to be the #1 multi-discipline Performance Training & Fitness brand worldwide. RYU intends to create the world’s most desired Technical Training Apparel.



2016: RYU intends to add two more stores by the end of 2016. These stores are planned to be added in high-end retail locations. RYU’s current flagship store, in Kitsilano, is in Vancouver’s health-centric neighborhood. The neighborhood boasts Lululemon, Arcteryx, Kit & Ace, and other athletic apparel companies. Kitsilano provides the ideal neighborhood for RYU with a culture of fitness and healthy-living.

RYU’s flagship West 4th store was designed by award-winning AA Roberts Architects. The company did an amazing job with an ‘open-concept’ which provides for stress-free shopping, more time spent in the store, and comfortability for the consumer. Upstairs is an open-gym inspired space for fitness enthusiasts to work out or hold classes.

RYU’s West 4th Flagship Location Look & Feel
“It’s very inviting and open. People can hang out in the store, and can easily touch and feel product… We have a nutrition bar and a nice seating area where people can hang out with their computers. There’s also an upstairs area where we have a training platform where our brand connectors [influencers like fitness instructors] can workout and test products. It’s very much an inclusive space, where it’s the hub and the heart and soul of our brand.” – Marcello Leone

2017: RYU’s management team intends to have nine stores by the end of 2017

2019: RYU’s management team intends to build the company to be a $100M sales company

2025: RYU plans to open 100 stores by 2025 worldwide. Initially, RYU will focus on North American expansion, and then roll out to Europe and developed countries.

RYU also plans to outfit 10M athletes & be a Global Iconic Brand by 2025.

The Beta 37.5 Development Lab

The Beta 37.5 Development Lab is now home to some of the smartest designers and product engineers on the planet. They’ve come together to invent the future of athletic performance. There is no signage. No fancy exterior. No clue as to what is inside. But behind the nondescript walls, a new Universe is being built. Beta 37.5 Development Lab will be the catalyst behind the world’s most iconic athletic technical apparel, bags, and accessories.

RYU’s Beta 37.5 design lab in Squamish is housed with some of the best talent in the world and management anticipates that our next launch of product will be game changing. The work that the team has done in 2015 is unprecedented in this industry. The company has created an entire brand, DNA, launched a store and delivered product.  Most companies would take three years to do half of what RYU did. 

CEO Marcello Leone has hinted at many surprises in place for RYU, given the brand acceptance. One such surprise includes a possible expansion into high-quality, fashionable and athletic footwear.

Distinctness of the RYU Brand

On a daily basis, RYU is building a DNA & brand image around community, athletic technical apparel, and having a best of category appeal. The emphasis on ‘community’ is vital in the process of building brand momentum for RYU.



Men and woman are increasingly wearing urban, comfortable, and well-fitted clothes to the gym as well in the office scene and in everyday activities.

Although, at first, it’s easy to group RYU with Lululemon and other big name athletic brands such as Nike and Under Armour, one must understand RYU’s value proposition. RYU sells urban athletic apparel. The company has ambitions to be the world’s number one multi-discipline performance training & fitness brand in the world.

The team is comprised of industry professionals who understand the athletic space and how to build a brand. Building a brand takes building a culture and a distinct DNA for the brand. As CEO Leone states, a brand needs a distinct DNA, a clear message and an innovative product. 

This distinction is critical to the early success of RYU and will be as important in the continuing momentum for RYU. In a space with such big players, RYU has intelligently understood where the gap is, and is strategically not another ‘Me Too’ brand. Consumers are looking for something much different, and RYU has a world-class engineering team that listens to consumer demands, and is not compromising fit, value, and design. The team boasts experience from Lululemon, Under Armour, Arcteryx and other successful athletic apparel companies. Given all this, RYU believes that the brand can reach people much differently and in a way the big players cannot.

"People always say are you the next Lululemon, Nike, Reebok. My answer is no we're not. There's this hole in the market in this athletic training world. We hate the term athleisure. We are Urban Athletic." - Treya Klassen, VP Product and Brand of RYU.

RYU Reaches Consumers Better Through a Large Focus on Community
It’s important to discuss the community aspect of RYU and how this is creating a cult-like following for the company and amazing organic viral marketing.



RYU is creating Vancouver’s most desirable community recognized for connecting like-minded people to opportunities and relationships. RYU empowers athletes to live a passionate, authentic and nourishing lifestyle. The company exists to facilitate human performance.

From this vision RYU created the RYU Sweat Club: free community-oriented weekly workout classes.  The purpose of the RYU Sweat Club is to provide a space for the community to connect with some of the top local trainers in the industry, meet new people, and feel part of the RYU brand.  Additionally, RYU provides Vancouver’s community of trainers the opportunity to feature themselves in front of new potential clients and customers.  By supporting fitness professionals, RYU is giving back to the leaders that are driving the industry forward.

The RYU flagship store is also a space for community events related to health and wellness. RYU provides a venue that allows the community the freedom to activate their workshops, seminars, fundraisers, and other events related to facilitating human performance (free of charge). 

RYU is also not designed for any specific sport. The company connects to all athletes as a multi-disciplinary clothing line. RYU is the innovator with uncompromised ‘style’ in this exhausted space. "Performance, innovation, style, multi-disciplined -- a few key words that we could speak about that differentiates us clearly. We are Urban Athletic." - Marcello Leone.

RYU has its own ‘DNA.’ The look is clean, simple and timeless. RYU’s DNA is really to have best in class products to wear 24/7 without compromising fit, value, and design. This is why RYU recruited top fashion talent, which established this ‘DNA,’ which has also developed an enhanced corporate culture with a long-term consistent vision. ‘Beautiful Tough’ perfectly sums up the brand’s DNA.

“Performance innovation and enduring style is what makes the global athletic-tech apparel manufacturer unique in its own right; meaning when you wear RYU, you can not only expect to perform better, but also look elegant while at it. In conclusion, the products are aimed at outfitting every single person irrespective of his/her social status, background and culture. Expect to find a plethora of durable, high quality athletic-tech apparel and accessories when you visit the RYU store this fall.”
Suzanne Zilkowski, Vancouver Health coach
 

Capitalizing on this Massive Gap

Lululemon has a clear brand name in yoga apparel and upscale sweatpants and athletic shirts. These are clothes designed to do stretchy exercises and for lounging, with an extreme focus on comfortability and relaxation. Lululemon predominantly markets to a female demographic and leaves a big opportunity for market share, especially in Vancouver. Q1 2016 ratio of sales between men and women is 45% to 55%, indicating that the RYU brand is appealing to men and women almost equally. This sets RYU apart from direct competitors.  

Also, every female athlete RYU spoke to was tired of the currents brands. The innovators wanted something new.  With a sea of sameness and “me too” brands a new distinct brand was ready to show up fresh to consumers. RYU realized it was the perfect time to create a new DNA for RYU and that “Urban Athletic” was a space that was needed and wanted. 
 
The male shopper in this space has never been fully taken care of. RYU saw a market to make very wearable, very technical training apparel. RYU created a plan to work with athletes all over the city to understand what was missing in their apparel. What the company discovered was no one was servicing their needs. RYU worked with male athletes, trainers and cross fit instructors. RYU created products that worked for them specifically, including clothing to wear 24/7 in and out of the gym. The key was serving a lifestyle and designing products to solve problems. 

RYU’s revenue from the store for Q4 2015 was $254,664, of which $245,167 was from the new RYU product line, also a great success which validated that there was a gap in the market.

RYU gives customers the ability to experience the brand when they want and how they want in what they call the Omni-channel experience. It is being able to recognize each customer as an individual in all channels.

The Omni-Channel Experience includes:

Through the Beta 37.5 Development lab, RYU also intends to nurture, attract, and develop the world’s best thinkers. These individuals also include athletes who are instrumental in the design and functionality of RYU apparel. This is a critical element for the RYU brand because athletes seek solutions based on their personal experiences, not third party research. All in all, these athletes truly know the issues that they face in various sports, and are practically designing gear for themselves and for the activities they enjoy. This is a key critical difference RYU offers. Athletes have the insight that lets them separate fact from fiction when looking at specific issues athletes face.

"We build our stores in the community; we connect with our community, athletes, trainers," added Leone. "We're not taking your typical approach of opening up a mall location. We believe today, to be successful in any iconic global brand, you must have a true authentic emotional connection to your consumer." – Marcello Leone

Marcello added, “If you’re going to bring out an athletic apparel line that just does what everybody else does, where’s the advantage, what’s the point? No one cares about mediocrity. You have to be leading and I think we’ve done that with our whole athletic tech apparel and accessory line. think the category that we were able to create with athletic-tech apparel that takes you into the gym and into your daily life, we have been very clear to identify our own category so we can work very well with our competitors in this space.”

According to “Hitting a home run in the athletic apparel industry” report by Certona:

‘What used to be a market dominated by a few heavy-hitters is now full of fashion-forward, hi-tech athletic wear for every sport, athlete and weekend warrior.’ – Very similar to the market RYU is going for.

Global Sports Apparel Industry

Growth and Market Size

According to a new report by Allied Market Research titled, "World Sports Apparel - Market Opportunities and Forecasts, 2014-2020," the world sports apparel market is expected to generate revenue of $184.6B by 2020, growing at a CAGR of 4.3% during the forecast period.

The male segment dominates the world sports apparel market, constituting around 52% of the total market revenue. The women segment is expected to grow at a relatively higher CAGR of 5.7% during the forecast period, on account of the growing interest and participation of women in different sports activities.

The online mode of sale segment is expected grow at a CAGR of 9.5% during the forecast period.

“Well, the athletic apparel category is the number one and only growing category in the apparel industry as stated by Morgan-Stanley two weeks ago. This segment is only going to get bigger. We love the health and wellness space, we love what the team has created and if I have to invest my money in a company that I can see has such great future upsides, no different than when we opened Leone, I will certainly do that.” – Marcello Leone

Capital Markets Info

Basic Shares Outstanding: 105,146,350*
Warrants: 56,085,921
Options: 8,230,000

Stock Price (May 31^th, 2016): $0.18
Market Cap:  $18,926,343
*Approx. 32% owned by CEO Leone, Management & Directors

RYU is a rapidly growing company which is quickly establishing an identity within the sports apparel industry. RYU has flown under the radar here, making the shares significantly cheaper than just a few months ago. This is also in a rapid growth phase where the company intends to continue to open new stores and gain momentum.

Under Armour (UA) Scenario Analysis
I see considerable similarities with how Under Armour started out in 2001 and RYU. Initially, Founder Kevin Plank funded most of the company himself as he saw considerable opportunity in moisture-wicking garments. Under Armour sold $100,000 at the end of the second year, after signing on with a University and gaining traction. Impressive to note that RYU did over $100,000 in one month after opening. Major NFL teams and retailers carried UA and sales took off to become a multi-million dollar business which is now a multi-billion dollar business. As UA understood its niche market in moisture wicking garments, if I’m correct with my analysis, I believe RYU also has a niche with urban athletic and can follow similar growth patterns as UA.

"Under Armour has been a phenomenal success story. Its stock has risen steadily--almost 2,000 percent in the decade since its IPO. "But when you're hitting a home run every quarter on the core apparel business, why mess around with a moon shot?" -Morningstar retail analyst Paul Swinand

“I was a not-big-enough, not-fast-enough football player who wanted a little bit of an edge on the field. I figured my own sweat, if I could get that off my body, and more importantly, the weight that stood behind it, that would help. So the idea was why doesn’t someone make a better alternative for a short-sleeve cotton t-shirt in the summer and a long-sleeve cotton t-shirt in the winter. It was so incredibly obvious to me at the time, wondering why no one had ever addressed this issue. Innovation in sports and sporting goods was limited sometimes to a shoe, every now and then to a piece of equipment, but apparel was always an afterthought, and I just wondered why. Someone had to create a better alternative.” – Kevin Plank, CEO of UA

Management Team

CEO, President & Chairman: Marcello Leone

Mr. Leone is highly regarded as a visionary in the fashion industry. Recognized as one of North America’s leading retailers operating one of Canada’s largest and most successful independent specialty stores for over 16 years, Mr. Leone’s entrepreneurial achievements are a result of his strong leadership, strategic vision and ability to raise capital. In 2012 he founded Naturo Group Investments Inc., which owns Trace Blackwater, a rapidly growing private beverage company with distribution in over 2,000 locations. Mr. Leone has been an RYU investor since 2011.

Retail Director: Brett Pawson

Mr. Pawson is an entrepreneur, executive and manager with over 15 years of sales and operations experience in the retail, consumer goods and wellness sectors. He has extensive experience in the athletic apparel space and his past experiences include successful franchise roles with lululemon athletica, The Body Shop and national distribution for pluggz Footwear. He was instrumental in establishing lululemon athletica in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan as one of the top performing stores in the company and creating many new programs for leadership development, community building, out of store events and sales performance. Mr. Pawson has a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Saskatchewan.

CFO: Pedro Villa

Mr. Villa is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA, CA) with six years of post‐designation professional experience, four of which he spent helping to transform finance departments. Prior to joining RYU, he held controllership and financial reporting roles in three Vancouver based mining companies with operations in North America. Mr. Villa began his professional career at Deloitte in the audit and assurance practice serving notable Canadian public companies in the IT and mining industries for four years. Mr. Villa has a Bachelor of Science in Business Management with concentrations in entrepreneurship and marketing from Babson College in the United States.

VP of Product & Brand: Alex Briglio

Mr. Briglio has over 25 years of sales management, brand development and marketing experience in the sports industry with both local and international brands. He was instrumental in making Swany Canada the #1 selling performance winter sport glove in North America, taking the company from a start-up to the market leader. His previous experience includes Helly Hansen, Scarpa and Deuter, as well as developing dealer programs for Costco, MEC, Sport Chek, Sports Experts, REI, Blackcomb and The Bay, among hundreds of others.

VP of Product & Brand: Treya Klassen

Treya is the former Director and President of Ank Apparel Manufacturer, one of the leading technical apparel manufacturers in Canada and Asia. AnK’s customer base included Polo RLX, Lululemon, Eddie Bauer, Cabelas, Sitka, Gander Mountain, Department of National Defense, Mountain Equipment Co-Op, and Arcteryx. With over twentyeight years of experience in the apparel industry and the current Account Manager of Polartec, Treya will be assisting the team at RYU in developing and creating the newest, most innovative textile platforms. Polartec® are the creators of Polartec fabrics – the most advanced performance textiles available today.

Product Design Director: Juliet Korver

Juliet’s past roles include Lululemon, O’Neill, and Filmar. Juliet has a strong background in apparel manufacturing, developing private label products for many of the top brands in the outdoor and performance sports labels. Customers include North Face, Vans, Marmot, Spider, and Swix. As the Brand Product Manager at Lululemon, Juliet was responsible for branding of collections and integrating technologies, fabrics and products which helped shape some of Lululemon’s most popular apparel products. As the Product and Marketing Manager at Filmar and O’Neill, she shaped product strategies, including directing the design and technical product team.

Investors should note that Leone gave options to the Management team. These are priced at $0.30, a premium to the current market price. The condition in these options to be exercised is profitability and being cash-flow positive. This aligns management to the long-term goals of the company and investors. Ultimately, this also creates a culture of thinking big and achieving the scale required for profitability, while keeping margins healthy.




Disclaimer: the material presented in this article is intended for informational purposes only and not a recommendation to buy or sell securities. The authors have presented the information with an objective viewpoint. At time of publication, the publishers have held stock in the company and may receive reimbursement for dissemination.