The most apt description of Daily Drills’ and the brand’s overnight fame can be boiled down to a video link I sent to the teams’ publicist with the message “… oh my god??”. In it, a band of 20-somethings documenting their journey waking up at 4 A.M. and waiting in line in anticipation of Daily Drills‘ pop-up in at La La Land Kind Cafe in Dallas, Texas, along with at least 60 other young women, up before dawn, hoping to snag a sweatshirt. Although co-founders Kennedy Crichlow and Mary Ralph Lawson couldn’t have imagined it when they first started the line in 2020, it’s now become the norm for the beloved internet brand.
Enter Daily Drills, one of the many crop of direct-to-consumer activewear and loungewear brands to pop up in the pandemic. Unlike many of them, though, Daily Drills is one of the few still massively successful beyond the era of whipped coffee and dyed sweatshirts: Crichlow, Lawson, and their devoted fan-base have shed off their sweat sets in favor of a chicer, more elevated take on a lifestyle and resort brand. There’s pop-ups in New York and Dallas (and, judging by the online success, plenty of more to come), while a drop-based model that inevitably sells out leads to customers wanting more and more.
We believe there is room for every lifestyle brand when you stay true to yourself,” co-founders Lawson and Crichlow tell Who What Wear. “Sure there are plenty of lifestyle brands out there, but there is only one of us.”
It’s hard to miss— we’ve in the midst of a direct-to-consumer sweatsuit boom for a while. with every celebrity, influencer, and cool girl attempting to make their online audience convert into monetary sales. But, I have to admit, there’s something different about the girls behind Daily Drills. They’re both fashion industry and social marketing marketing vets with a self-funded mission that feels more akin to entrepreneurship than an opportunity to capitalize off of a TikTok algorithm. And, frankly, they know it too: “As long as we focus on our own styles vs. just chasing the next trend that the rest of the fashion industry is following, there’s space for us all.”
(Image credit: Courtesy of Daily Drills)
I know you two were friends long before you began the brand— I’d love to hear the story of how you two first met and what pain points you had that led you to start Daily Drills
We first met while contributing to a shared fashion IG account; each girl who was a part of the account posted on a different day of the week. When we finally met IRL while we were both in LA for college (Ken at Loyola Marymount & Ralph at Pepperdine) and we became fast friends.
We were feeling uninspired by our careers and closets, so when the world shut down during the pandemic, we had a chance to reflect on our lives and decided to take the leap and start Daily Drills. Everyone strongly encouraged us NOT to mix business and friendship, but we both have different strengths and interests which make us work so well as a team. We have definitely found our groove, it’s been one of the great joys in our lives!
(Image credit: Courtesy of Daily Drills)
Daily Drills has such a large, dedicated fanbase. I’m so curious on what engaging with your audience means to you, and how your customers inform your drops. Have you cracked the code on figuring out why they keep on coming back
Our customers mean everything to us because they are our community! Although we haven’t fully cracked the code yet and are always looking for new ways to engage with them. We are so grateful and honored by their dedication and are constantly inspired by their comments on our social media. We’re in our DMs everyday chatting with them in real time and we love that they are never afraid to tell us what they want. We like to keep the line of communication as open as possible so that we are truly bringing our audience IN – whether that be through in-person pop-ups, community events, online masterclasses, or sorority chats; we want there to be an open door policy.
We also travel to the places our customers love to vacation + want to vacation in and share behind the scenes content and travel guides along the way. For example, everyone who vacations in Aspen was super excited to shop the recent Aspen collection because it feels personal to them!
I’d love to hear more about the business model in approaching your collections like limited-edition, one-time drops. What was the decision going into that? Do you think that’s led to the buzz around the brand?
We didn’t anticipate being a drop-based business! On the first drop we couldn’t afford a large amount of inventory and when it sold out we were shocked. We immediately reinvested the profits into more inventory, and then that sold out again. Naturally, that created a pretty high demand and the buzz just kind of spiraled from there. We’re constantly trying to keep up with the demand, but so far it’s been so fun releasing collections with new designs and themes bi-weekly so that our customer always has something fresh to look forward to!
(Image credit: Courtesy of Daily Drills)
There’s so many lifestyle, resort wear and loungewear brands hoping to get a piece of the pie— especially since the pandemic, DTC “cozy wear” brands have exploded to become a big part of the fashion conversation. Where do you see the industry evolving from here, especially in a post-pandemic world?
One of the only good things that has come out of the pandemic is making loungewear socially acceptable! Comfort has always been key when it comes to fashion, but now it’s a priority, and we don’t think that’s going anywhere. We love finding ways to style our sweats up, and have enjoyed expanding into resort wear that’s a bit more elevated, but still just as comfy.
I think people will only get more creative and more bold from here. The oversized look has really expanded from lounge to ready to wear (ie. blazers, loose trousers, button downs). We’ve even been seeing it in top -ier designers recently like Miu Miu, who are leaning into the sporty chic side of loungewear
As female entrepreneurs, what advice would you give to your younger selves or other similar female founders who want to start their own company and brand
Starting is the hardest, most intimidating part! And if we can do it, so can you! Don’t be worried if your first product isn’t your best, it’s not supposed to be. Just keep ideating and working towards the bigger vision.
Princess Di-Style
(Image credit: Getty Images/Photo by Anwar Hussein/WireImage)
“One of our go-to’s is the oversized crew with bikers + socks + loafers or chunky sneakers for chic sporty on-the-go look.”
Daily Drills
Varsity Crew in Navy
FP Movement
Never Better Bike Shorts
Daily Drills
Varsity Socks in White & Navy
Axel Arigato
Marathon Runner
Matching Sweat-Set
(Image credit: Courtesy of Daily Drills)
“You also cannot go wrong with a matching sweat set to elevate your airport look for style and comfort”
Daily Drills
Oversized Crew in Sand
Daily Drills
Thermal Resort Pants in Sand
Ugg
Ultra Mini Classic Boot
Sweater, Shorts, and Boots
“We recently have loved styling our single button sweater with long shorts + boots (like Ken did for the opening of the NYC Daily Drills pop-up) or with the poplin resort pants for a more laid-back look.”
Daily Drills
Single Button Sweater & Scarf Set in Cream
Daily Drills
Everyday Tee in White
Mango
Pleated Bermuda Shorts
Toteme
The Mid Heel Leather Ankle Boots
Shop more Daily Drills and sweat set items:
Daily Drills
Poplin Patch Button Down in White
Daily Drills
Poplin Resort Pants in Lake Day/White Stripe
Daily Drills
Shrunken Cashmere Sweater in Light Grey
Daily Drills
Pointelle Tank in Cream
Aritzia
Sweatfleece Cozy Fleece Mega Flutter Sweatpant
Daily Drills
Aspen! Oversized Crew in White
Daily Drills
Sweat Shorts in Sand
