Avoli (pronounced Ah-Volley), a volleyball-specific brand, is focused on designing volleyball equipment for female players. Founded by former Nike, Lululemon and Under Armour veterans Mark Oleson and Rick Anguilla, they launched their product line last month with a low-top volleyball shoe, with knee pads, arm sleeves, shorts, and a higher-top mid-shoe in the line in the coming months.
Anguilla, a former VP of brand communications with Nike and SVP and brand strategy with Under Armour, and Oleson, formerly a VP of innovation at Lululemon and director of product and innovation at Under Armour, met when working at Under Armour. The two owners spoke with SGB Executive about the opportunities they see in girls’ and women’s volleyball, what inspired them to launch the brand and the company’s design ethos as a direct-to-consumer brand.
What are the opportunities in women’s and girls’ volleyball from a participation standpoint?
R.A.: Volleyball is the No. 1 participation team sport for girls in the U.S., with more athletes playing than girls’ soccer, basketball and softball. Most people are surprised to hear that stat, and we describe the game’s growth as being hidden in plain sight. That might have something to do with the lack of professional leagues, but that’s changing. It’s a fun game to play and watch, and there is probably not a sport out there that requires the amount of teamwork that volleyball does.
What’s happening on the spectator or fan side?
R.A.: Beach volleyball has always been a popular spectator sport, especially during the Olympics, so the lack of professional leagues in the U.S. is surprising. That’s about to change. In 2024, there are plans for three leagues in the U.S., including the Pro Volleyball Federation, Athletes Unlimited and League One Volleyball. Most college athletes who pursue professional careers end up playing in Europe, where the game has a lot of spectators, but now those players will be able to play here in the U.S.
At the end of August, Nebraska hopes to break the NCAA volleyball attendance record when they host Volleyball Day in Nebraska, an outdoor event held in a stadium. To date, they have sold more than 91,000 tickets, which could break the record for a women’s sporting event. One of our athlete brand ambassadors, outside hitter Harper Murray, will play in the event. We also signed two other brand ambassadors, Ashley Le, a setter for the University of Virginia and Reilly Heinrich, a libero for the University of Texas.
What inspired you to launch Avoli?
R.A.: It was watching our girls play for their high school and club teams. First, you notice that they are having a lot of fun playing and are focused on getting better. With our experience in athletic footwear, we looked at what they wore on their feet and were shocked to discover that many athletes wore men’s basketball shoes. As we investigated further, we found that the sport also had an increased rate of repetitive stress injuries. Many of these athletes play for their school and club teams, which can mean playing competitively for 10-to-12 months a year. We also found that volleyball players jump four times more than basketball players, so the physical toll on their bodies was demanding. So, we set out to find solutions to address the issues and help keep them on the court. We want to find performance solutions that will help them stay out on the court.
What’s unique about the design of the footwear line?
M.O.: We zeroed in on four areas: Fit, Cushioning, Ventilation, and Traction. We could discuss how volleyball athletes move differently than basketball players for days. But starting with fit, a lot has been written of late about how legacy women’s athletic footwear brands have not built products to fit a woman’s foot better, which is often thinner in the heel and more splayed in the forefoot. We built our last with these physiological truths in mind. The result is that our athletes are not constantly kneeling to retie their shoes.
Cushioning was critical, given how much time volleyball players spend in the air because they eventually have to land. We combined three foam types in the forefoot to help cushion those landings better. One of the foams works like the memory foam in a good mattress. We’re very open to learning from other industries if it will help improve performance and help protect volleyball athletes.
Ventilation jumped out in our initial discussions with the athletes. Countless weekend tournaments are played across the country, with thousands of girls playing at each, and we consistently heard about how wet and smelly their footwear got over the day. When you turn our shoe over, you’ll see strategic holes in the sole design to help push the hot air and moisture out and bring cool air in, like a bellow. There are holes in the sock liner, too, to allow the moisture to escape. We have patents pending on our ventilation system, which we dubbed VoliVent.
Finally, traction was an important area to address as most of the movement in the game consists of short steps and getting your feet accurately set for jumping or receiving. We noticed athletes wetting their hands and tapping the bottom of their shoes to improve stickiness. It’s a fine line between slipping and creating a too-sticky sole, so we developed our OctoLug design to address that need.
Does apparel and/or equipment face similar fit issues as footwear?
M.O: We will have knee pads, arm sleeves, shorts, and a higher-top mid-shoe in the line in the coming months. Our product development starts with the athlete and how we can improve their performance on the court. For example, most knee pads, as many volleyball athletes wear, are not designed for the sport. Our kneepads are made of a tightly woven ballistic-grade material that manages moisture and slides, which volleyball players do a lot, especially playing in the back row. It sounds small, but we want our athletes to expect tangible innovation from us.
What is the company’s distribution plan? Largely direct-to-consumer?
R.A.: Yes, we will be a DTC brand exclusively to start, but we have had conversations with potential partners in the wholesale space. We are introducing colorful footwear, which we can communicate in a DTC format, but we know volleyball players must be able to experience the feel of our product, so we’re also developing strategies to reach our athletes in their game environments.
Photos courtesy Avoli x Business Wire
Lead photo: Co-founders Mark Oleson and Rick Anguilla
