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Figs (company)

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FIGS, Inc.
Company typePublic company
IndustryMedical apparel
Founded2013; 11 years ago (2013)
Founders
  • Heather Hasson
  • Trina Spear
HeadquartersSanta Monica, California, U.S.
ProductsScrubs
Number of employees
264 (December 31, 2021)
Websitewearfigs.com

Figs (stylized as FIGS) is an American clothing company based in Santa Monica, California.[1] The company sells scrubs and other products for healthcare professionals. It was founded in 2013 by Heather Hasson and Trina Spear, who are co-CEOs.

History

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FIGS was founded by Heather Hasson and Trina Spear in Los Angeles, California in 2013.[2][3] Hasson had the business idea when she realized that, unlike companies such as Lululemon, Under Armour, and Nike, that make clothes for athletes, there were no companies making fitted uniforms for health care professionals.[4][5][6] Spear worked on Wall Street at the time and helped Hasson develop the business idea.[7]

Hasson and Spear started FIGS using only their personal savings.[8] They designed an alternative to the common scrubs available. Initially, they sold their product out of the parking lots of hospitals, getting feedback from staff.[8] In 2013, Hasson and Spear raised a $2 million seed round so that they would not run out of product. In 2014 and 2015, they raised an additional $3 million.[9] In 2016, the Lululemon-backed venture capital fund, Campfire, led the Series A funding round, which raised $5 million.[10]

In 2017, Thomas Tull, businessman and founder of Legendary Pictures, invested $65 million in the company and became majority owner of FIGS. Others who have invested include Will Smith, Irving Place Capital, former Lululemon CEO Christine Day,[8] and Mohr Davidow Ventures.[11][9]

The company headquarters are in Santa Monica, California.[1] In December 2015, FIGS was selected to join the Endeavor network, a startup accelerator and mentorship program.[12] As of 2018 the company had raised a total of $75 million in funding.[13][14] FIGS was recognized as one of the fastest-growing companies in the United States by Inc. in 2018,[15] with the company having a three-year growth of 9,948%.[7][16]

In 2019 FIGS opened a pop-up shop in Los Angeles.[11] It added face masks to its products during the coronavirus pandemic in 2020,[17] and expanded sales to Australia and the United Kingdom.[9] In 2020, revenue doubled to $263 million and profits were almost $50 million.[18][19]

In May 2021 FIGS filed for an initial public offering for $3 billion.[20] On May 27, 2021, it became the first company led by two female cofounders to trade on the New York Stock Exchange.[18] Also for the first time, FIGS allowed retail investors early access to purchase shares before the official sale began on the NYSE.[21]

In November 2022, a California jury rejected all claims made by a competitor as "not valid" in a lawsuit alleging FIGS had "false advertising and misleading business practices." The lawsuit was concluded after almost 4 years of litigation.[22][23][24]

Operation

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FIGS sells scrubs, other medical clothing and associated products, including scrub tops, scrub pants, underscrubs, lab coats, activewear, and loungewear.[25] The scrubs are made with a proprietary material that is antimicrobial for odor resistance with four-way stretch and pockets.[26]

All sales are online, via the company's website.[27] FIGS predicted revenue of over $250 million in 2020,[28][29][30] mostly through the sale of its upgraded scrubs.[31] The company's warehouse is in City of Industry, California.[32]

Charitable operations

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FIGS also operates the Threads for Threads program, which donates sets of scrubs to countries with limited access to medical apparel. The program includes giving trips and results in the donations of scrubs around the world.[33] By 2019 the initiative had donated over 500,000 sets of scrubs in over 35 countries.[34][35]

In the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, FIGS donated 30,000 sets of scrubs to New York hospitals Bellevue and Mount Sinai, and sent 100 care packages to health care workers every week. It contracted the production of over one million N95 masks and also donated them to hospitals and medical professionals.[36][37]

Marketing

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In October 2020, FIGS released a promotional video featuring a female osteopathic physician[38] in neon pink scrubs reading a book titled "Medical Terminology for Dummies" while holding it upside down. The camera then cut to a zoomed in view of a blank badge labeled with the letters "DO".[39] The video was taken down after widespread criticism as sexist,[40] particularly from female physicians and osteopathic physicians.[41][42]

Hasson and Spear apologized for the video[42] and said they planned to hire consultants to help with future videos to avoid repeating this mistake.[42] FIGS later partnered with the American Osteopathic Association and pledged $100,000 to it.[42]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Scrubs Makers Square Off | Los Angeles Business Journal". labusinessjournal.com. Retrieved 2021-04-15.
  2. ^ Chang, Andrea (July 3, 2013). "Start-up spotlight: E-commerce company Figs targets medical apparel". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 14, 2018.
  3. ^ Dahlberg, Nancy (May 5, 2016). "FIGS receives $5 million in Series A funding led by Campfire Capital". Miami Herald. Retrieved June 14, 2018.
  4. ^ "Don't Want No Scrubs? #WearFIGS". SURFACE. 2019-12-05. Retrieved 2021-04-15.
  5. ^ Raphael, Rina (2018-07-06). "Female founders give scrubs a functional, fashionable makeover". Fast Company. Retrieved 2021-04-15.
  6. ^ Gallagher, Jacob (2018-10-15). "This Company is Fast Becoming the Warby Parker of Scrubs". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2021-04-15.
  7. ^ a b Field, Hayden (28 May 2019). "This Woman Entrepreneur Liquidated Her 401(k) to Co-Found Her Company. Now, It's Bringing in $100 Million". Entrepreneur.
  8. ^ a b c "'I Cashed Out my 401(k) to Start a Business and Paid $70,000 in Taxes and Fees. Here's Why I Have No Regrets'". Money. Retrieved 2021-04-15.
  9. ^ a b c Berg, Madeline. "Mission Critical? With Coronavirus Pandemic, Scrubs Maker Figs Steps Up Efforts To Spiff Up The Hospital Ward". Forbes. Retrieved 2021-04-15.
  10. ^ Dahlberg, Nancy (5 May 2016). "FIGS receives $5 million in funding led by Campfire Capital". Miami Herald. Retrieved 15 April 2021.
  11. ^ a b Gonzalez-Rodriguez, Angela (2019-09-22). "FIGS, the start-up disrupting the 60 billion dollars medicalapparel market". fashionunited.com. Retrieved 2021-04-15.
  12. ^ Dahlberg, Nancy (December 4, 2015). "FIGS, SkyPatrol chosen for Endeavor network". Miami Herald. Retrieved June 14, 2018.
  13. ^ Ackerman, Ruthie (January 23, 2018). "FIGS Cleans Up With The 4th Largest Raise For A Female-Founded Company In 2017". Forbes. Retrieved June 14, 2018.
  14. ^ "FIGS Raises $65M in Funding". FINSMES. January 23, 2018. Retrieved June 14, 2018.
  15. ^ Morse, Brit. "From Snack Delivery to Sustainable Energy, Here Are the Fastest-Growing Companies in L.A." Inc.
  16. ^ Gallagher, Jacob (15 October 2018). "This Company is Fast Becoming the Warby Parker of Scrubs". The Wall Street Journal.
  17. ^ "Doctors share their favorite face masks". NBC News. Retrieved 2021-04-19.
  18. ^ a b "FIGS is the first company to go public led by two female cofounders". Fortune. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
  19. ^ Darmiento, Laurence (2021-05-27). "Not your grandparents' scrubs: Trendy medical-wear retailer Figs goes public". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
  20. ^ "Scrubs maker FIGS eyes $3 bln valuation in IPO, to offer shares on Robinhood". Reuters. May 21, 2021.
  21. ^ Dishman, Lydia (2021-05-24). "Figs stock is available to request on Robinhood before it debuts on the NYSE". Fast Company. Retrieved 2021-06-10.
  22. ^ Amore, Samson (4 November 2022). "FIGS Wins Lawsuit Against Them for 'False Advertising'". dot.LA.
  23. ^ Harrell, Alexandra (6 November 2022). "Fast-Growing DTC Brand Wins 'Meritless' Lawsuit". sourcingjournal.com.
  24. ^ Deczynski, Rebecca (4 November 2022). "Upstart Figs Wins Its 4-Year Legal Battle With a Legacy Brand Owner". inc.com.
  25. ^ Lieber, Chavie (2016-06-27). "Scrubs Finally Get a Long-Overdue Makeover". Racked. Retrieved 2021-04-19.
  26. ^ Rittenhouse, Lindsay. "Meet the Startup Backed by Will Smith That Is Trying to Make Ugly Doctors Scrubs Cool". TheStreet. Retrieved 2021-04-19.
  27. ^ Berg, Madeline. "Mission Critical? With Coronavirus Pandemic, Scrubs Maker Figs Steps Up Efforts To Spiff Up The Hospital Ward". Forbes. Retrieved 2021-05-02.
  28. ^ Berg, Madeline. "Mission Critical? With Coronavirus Pandemic, Scrubs Maker Figs Steps Up Efforts To Spiff Up The Hospital Ward". Forbes. Retrieved 2021-05-02.
  29. ^ Fickenscher, Lisa (2020-11-04). "Medical scrubs startup Figs gears up for $4B IPO amid legal battle: Sources". New York Post. Retrieved 2021-05-02.
  30. ^ "Masters of Scale with Reid Hoffman - Rapid Response: A prescription for healthy growth, with FIGS Co-CEO Heather Hasson on Stitcher". Stitcher. Retrieved 2021-05-02.
  31. ^ Berg, Madeline. "Mission Critical? With Coronavirus Pandemic, Scrubs Maker Figs Steps Up Efforts To Spiff Up The Hospital Ward". Forbes. Retrieved 2021-05-02.
  32. ^ "Disrupting medical scrubs". Marketplace. Retrieved 2021-05-02.
  33. ^ Wang, Connie. "Should Doctors Be Influencers? One Fashion Brand Is Betting On It". www.refinery29.com. Retrieved 2021-05-02.
  34. ^ Rosmarin, Remi. "Figs makes innovative, durable scrubs that are popular with medical workers — here's how the brand is giving back to the healthcare community right now". Insider. Retrieved 2021-05-02.
  35. ^ Gonzalez-Rodriguez, Angela (2019-09-22). "FIGS, the start-up disrupting the 60 billion dollars medicalapparel market". fashionunited.com. Retrieved 2021-05-02.
  36. ^ Berg, Madeline. "Mission Critical? With Coronavirus Pandemic, Scrubs Maker Figs Steps Up Efforts To Spiff Up The Hospital Ward". Forbes. Retrieved 2021-05-02.
  37. ^ Rosmarin, Remi. "Figs makes innovative, durable scrubs that are popular with medical workers — here's how the brand is giving back to the healthcare community right now". Insider. Retrieved 2021-05-02.
  38. ^ "Scrubs brand FIGS comes under fire for 'insensitive' ad featuring female physician". ABC News. Retrieved 2020-10-14.
  39. ^ Meyer, Zlati (2020-10-14). "Scrubs maker Figs made a medical mistake—in an ad. They apologized". Fast Company. Retrieved 2020-10-14.
  40. ^ Deliso, Meredith (14 October 2020). "Scrubs brand FIGS comes under fire for 'insensitive' ad featuring female physician". Good Morning America. Retrieved 24 May 2021.
  41. ^ "Figs, maker of scrubs, apologizes for 'insensitive' ad targeting osteopathic doctors". news.yahoo.com. Retrieved 2020-10-13.
  42. ^ a b c d Andrew, Scottie; Ebrahimji, Alisa (15 October 2020). "Popular scrubs company FIGS generates backlash from women in medicine and DOs after insensitive video". CNN. Retrieved 24 May 2021.
[edit]
  • Official website
  • Business data for FIGS, Inc.:
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