16. MoveActive

Revenue: $4.21 million
Growth: 39.68%
Founder: Melissa Pain
Head office: Melbourne, VIC
Year founded: 2009
Employees: 16
Industry: Retail
Website: moveactive.com.au

How it started

Melissa Pain was running her own pilates practice and struggling to find grip socks that were both functional and fun. 

The options in the market were only available in three basic colours, and didn’t perform as well as she was hoping they would. With a toddler at her feet and baby number two on the way, she started MoveActive with nothing but her laptop and a basement for storage.

Growth

The first patterned sock was a hit, and 13 years later, the company has 4300 wholesale customers across 39 countries.

As pilates, yoga and barre classes were all of a sudden unavailable when the world locked down, MoveActive pivoted to helping its stockists and customers running studios, helping them promote their online presence with support and sales education.

At the same time, MoveActive jumped on to the direct-to-consumer market, selling to people completing virtual workouts at home.

As a result, it has seen revenue grow from $2.1 million in 2020-21 to $4.2 million in its last financial year result, and tripled its staff.

Where to next

The company wants to extend its market domination over to the US, and keep up its average of 50% year-on-year growth across the business.

A loyalty program, along with monthly product launches will be key, along with a new fulfilment centre offshore in the next 6-12 months.

The Retail Award winner

MoveActive won the Retail Award category at The Smart50 Awards 2023.

Richard Li, co-founder at July and #1 winner at last year’s Smart50 Awards, was a judge on the category, and said:

“MoveActive is an outstanding business due to its remarkable journey from Pain’s personal struggle to a global success story. Her passion for creating functional and attractive grip socks to meet a genuine market need set the foundation for the company’s excellence.

“MoveActive’s adaptability during the COVID-19 crisis showcased its resilience. MoveActive’s commitment to nurturing community connections, listening to their customers, and swiftly pivoting in the face of adversity has been essential to its survival and continued growth.”

Back to The Smart50 Awards 2023.