Vuori’s second golf collection – more technical than the first – arrives as the $5.5bn California challenger uses high-profile partnerships to build sport-specific credibility alongside its lifestyle core.
Weeks after rolling out its inaugural golf campaign, Vuori is moving quickly to signal that the category is a long-term bet. On May 12, 2026, the California activewear brand released a second dedicated golf range and again put actor and keen golfer Tom Holland at the centre of the story.
For Vuori, the launch is less about the clothes than the message: building credibility in a sport where brand heat alone does not travel far. By returning to Holland so soon after April’s ‘Play It as It Lies’ debut, the company is positioning the partnership as an ongoing platform, with Holland as its most credible endorser.
Visualizza questo post su Instagram
Holland is a partner with skin in the game
Holland’s involvement with Vuori is structured differently from a conventional celebrity endorsement. He plays a creative and strategic role in the direction of the line. His background in gymnastics, dance and parkour provides the physical credibility Vuori looks for in its collaborations, and the campaign was co-directed by his brother Harry Holland.
The golf partnership launched in April 2026 with the ‘Play It as It Lies’ campaign, which introduced the first range and announced a multi-year global deal. The second collection, arriving within weeks, reinforces that golf is a long-term category investment for Vuori.
Draper and Gerber: the sport-by-sport ambassador logic of Vuori
Golf is not the only sport Vuori has entered through targeted partnerships. In February 2026, the brand strengthened its tennis position with a campaign fronted by British player Jack Draper, wearing the ‘HardKore Short’, Vuori’s most technically demanding tennis style to date. Draper had signed a multi-year deal with the brand in 2025. In April 2026, Vuori also launched its SS26 women’s campaign under the title ‘For Kaia’, starring model and actress Kaia Gerber, following the AW25 ‘Vuori by Kaia’ collection in which Gerber had a direct design role.
The brand is now testing its credentials in demanding sport categories
Vuori’s rise from an Encinitas garage in 2015 to a company valued at $5.5 billion rests on a specific proposition: performance fabrics with a relaxed aesthetic, aimed at consumers moving fluidly between the gym, the coffee shop and the weekend. Proprietary textiles such as DreamKnit and BreatheInterlock anchored that proposition materially. With the sport-specific push of 2025–26, Vuori is now competing on technical credibility in golf and tennis – categories with informed, demanding consumers and well-funded incumbents.
Meet the challenger brand: Vuori
Founded in 2015 by Joe Kudla in Encinitas, California, Vuori has quickly evolved from a West Coast startup into one of the most closely watched players in premium activewear. The brand’s growth culminated in an $825 million secondary investment in November 2024, led by General Atlantic and Stripes, valuing the company at $5.5 billion.
Vuori operates around 70-plus stores across the US and is pursuing an accelerated global retail strategy. It is targeting more than 100 locations worldwide by the end of 2026, alongside continued expansion of its direct-to-consumer and wholesale channels. The company’s investor base reflects that trajectory: SoftBank Vision Fund 2 led a $400 million Series C round in 2021, helping scale both retail and international distribution.
What differentiates Vuori in an increasingly crowded athleisure market is its balance of technical credibility and everyday wearability. Rather than anchoring itself in a single sport, the brand has built a broad, lifestyle-first platform, now sharpened through targeted entries into performance categories like golf and tennis that challenge sport-specific incumbents.
