2020 Earnie Awards Winner – Outerwear: Appaman

Outerwear

Appaman

Est. 2003

Lynn Husum, Co-Founder

First paying job: Daycare worker

Greatest fear: Something bad happening to my kids

Pet peeve: Chewing with your mouth open

Biggest motivator: Competition

Most coveted dinner guest: Julia Louis-Dreyfus

Hobbies: Ceramics and Netflix

Go-to snack during quarantine: My husband’s homemade bread with butter

Best advice you’ve ever received: Always plan your own birthday.

Last book you read: The Underground Railroad by Colson Whitehead

Last movie you watched: Superbad

One fact few people know about you: I met Harald (my husband and co-founder) met in a hostel in Guatemala when I was still a nurse.

Up & Up We are up so far this year and hoping this fourth quarter proves positive as well. We decided to double down and not halt our production when the Coronavirus put the country on lockdown. This turned out to be a great decision because we had inventory to fulfill Q3 and Q4 orders. We were also able to help accounts that needed more inventory.

Get Down (Alternative) We have started to use down alternatives for filler, and the end consumer is responding positively. All of the big gear companies do the same, and we were excited to be able to offer this to our customers. The down alternative is renewably sourced insulation. We love Dupont Sorona, a performance fiber made from plant-based ingredients. It retains its shape throughout the day—wear after wear, wash after wash.

Team Spirit Our team is amazing, and we have gotten really close with daily virtual meetings and monthly Zoom happy hours. Seeing our teammates’ apartments and meeting their kids have certainly helped us support each other in a different way. I have never been prouder of this little company!

Just a Hint Next year, we have some very fun initiatives I can’t reveal right now. All I can say is look out for great collabs and a few additions to our product lines. I also expect down alternatives will only become bigger, and renewable resources are overall the way this industry is headed.