Tecovas is riding the Western wave.
Known for its men’s and women’s cowboy boots and other Western style accessories, the Austin, Texas-based footwear and lifestyle brand announced last week a $56 million Series C, bringing its total equity investments to roughly $120 million. The round was led by venture capital firm Elephant, which also spearheaded the brand’s Series A and Series B funding rounds, and included new and existing investors like Access Capital, Seamless Capital, and Kemmons Wilson Companies.
Tecovas achieved two notable growth milestones last year, surpassing $100 million in annual revenue and selling its millionth pair of cowboy boots in the fourth quarter. The company grew more than 80 percent over the past year, and projects growth of more than 50 percent during 2022.
“This latest funding will allow us to scale our vision and welcome even more customers to the brand,” founding CEO Paul Hedrick said. Western styling has gone mainstream, with heritage denim brand Wrangler debuting its own line of cowboy-inspired silhouettes and Louis Vuitton incorporating dusty-washed jeans, enlarged belt buckles and cowboy boots into its F/W 21-22 collection.
“We’ve seen rapid growth since Tecovas’ launch in 2015,” Hedrick added, noting that the company will be “investing significantly in hiring, expanding our retail footprint, buying more inventory, and launching many new products.”
Tecovas will open up to seven new retail stores this year. It currently operates 17 stores in 10 states across the southern and western U.S., from Scottsdale, Ariz. to Atlanta and Nashville, Tenn. In May last year, the company added former Nike consumer marketplace executive Elliott Hill to its board to help expand both the direct-to-consumer and wholesale business channels.
Seven-year-old Tecovas also plans to branch out into new styles of handcrafted-in-Mexico footwear, apparel and accessories using leather sourced and tanned in the same city as production.