Hilma, a women-focused running footwear brand, has closed after facing inventory problems and challenges securing funding.
The Boston-based direct-to-consumer brand, founded in 2019 by ultra-marathon runner Brooke Torres, was known for using mass personalization and patent-pending fit technology to develop footwear for the unique shape of women’s feet.
The brand’s website remains active, but all the products shown on the site are listed as out-of-stock. The company’s running and trail shoes were also sold at REI and Sierra.
Torres said in an e-mail to Retail Dive, “We ultimately hit an inventory issue unrelated to the overall demand for our product that we could not recover from. We explored every possible path forward, but, compounded with a tightening venture capital environment (just 2.2 percent of capital in a recent year went to women-founded businesses), we were left with no choice but to shut things down.”
In 2022, Hilma raised $3 million in a funding round led by Brand Foundry Ventures, with participation from sports and footwear industry investors including Jeanne Jackson, a former Nike president; Rothy’s co-founder Roth Martin; Tecias founder Paul Hedrick; and Jason Jacobs, former CEO and founder of RunKeeper, which Asics acquired.
Image courtesy Hilma
