Halara

Last updated
Halara
Company typePrivate company
Industry Fast fashion
Founded2020
FounderJoyce Zhang
HeadquartersHong Kong
ProductsWomen's sportswear and casual apparel
Website thehalara.com

Halara is a Chinese fast fashion direct-to-consumer women's athleisure brand and ecommerce platform founded by Joyce Zhang and several investment capital firms in 2020. The company has headquarters in Hong Kong.

Contents

The company's main products include leggings, exercise dresses, and skorts. Its marketing and product development strategies revolve around social media and machine learning.

Marketing

Halara markets heavily through social media, in particular TikTok, and was noted by Vox in 2021 for being "especially notorious" for its "annoying" and "pervasive" advertisements on the platform. [1] [2] In 2021 the New York Times said the brand was "seemingly built around" its dupe of the Outdoor Voices exercise dress. [3] [4] According to Marketing Brew, the strategy developed after a March 2021 post by social media influencers about one of their products went viral. The company buys targeted advertising to highlight posts about their products and offers affiliate marketing to encourage influencers to create such posts. [5]

According to The Economist in 2023, it is among "hundreds of Chinese firms [which] are experimenting with [on-demand marketing] in the American marketplace". [6]

According to Cosmopolitan in 2025, while the number of TikTok ads were "getting out of hand" and the TikTok Shop was "sketchy", the company's website was a "[pleasant surprise]". [7] CNN in 2025 said "Halara is chronically online" using a marketing strategy that "harnesses AI and algorithms to analyze comments on its social media posts, gathering data about what styles its customers want to see next". The company refers to the strategy as a "community-driven approach". [8]

Vogue Business and Sixth Tone have referred to Halara as a fast fashion brand. [9] [10]

Product development

The brand uses machine learning and algorithms that analyze Google searches, Reddit discussions, other online data, and customer surveys about current and future fashion trends to develop new products. [11] [12] [6] Its loyalty program rewards customers for testing new products and providing feedback. [13] Cosmopolitan called out the company's community feedback strategy for product development. [14]

Products

The main products of the brand include leggings, [15] women's underwear, exercise dresses, and skorts. [16] [17] Sizing is inclusive, ranging from XS to 3X. [8] [14] [18]

Production

Halara's products are manufactured in and shipped from East and Southeast Asia. [19] [8]

History

The brand was founded in 2020 by Joyce Zhang, a former chief technology officer, backed by Chinese investment firms 5Y Capital, Capital Today, IDG, Hike Capital, and Sequoia. [20] [9] The company has headquarters in Hong Kong. [21] It is a brand of Doublefs, which was also formed in 2020. [10]

In early 2021, the brand launched its first collection of skorts. [22]

In 2023, it introduced leggings. [23] In May 2024, the brand opened its first pop-up store in New York City. [24] [25] Another opened in Los Angeles in 2025. [26]

Popularity

In 2021, one of their dresses was included in a Wired list of viral TikTok products. [27] In 2022, a workout skort reached 1 billion views on TikTok. [28] In 2024 Taylor Swift wore one of their skorts to Coachella. [29]

References

  1. ↑ Honkus, Mary (August 21, 2024). "Taylor Swift Trained for the 'Eras Tour' in This $30 Skort". Us Weekly . Archived from the original on October 7, 2024. Retrieved March 31, 2025.
  2. ↑ Nguyen, Terry (2021-09-13). "What's the hype over exercise dresses?". Vox . Archived from the original on 2024-10-06. Retrieved 2025-03-31.
  3. ↑ Kambhampaty, Anna P. (August 18, 2021). "We Have Reached Peak 'Exercise Dress'". The New York Times . Archived from the original on March 31, 2025. Retrieved March 31, 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  4. ↑ Vazquez, Alexa; 7 June 2021. "Yes, this Outdoor Voices exercise dress dupe is as good as everyone says". Reviewed . Retrieved 2025-04-01.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  5. ↑ Sheena, ByJasmine. "How Halara uses influencer incentives to go viral again and again". Marketing Brew . Retrieved 2026-02-06.
  6. 1 2 "How China Inc is tackling the TikTok problem". The Economist . March 7, 2023. Archived from the original on October 8, 2024. Retrieved March 31, 2025.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  7. ↑ Hyman, Jasmine; Oh, Hannah (2025-09-18). "Is Tiktok-Viral Brand Halara (Worn by Taylor Swift!) Legit? I Have Some Thoughts". Cosmopolitan . Retrieved 2026-02-06.
  8. 1 2 3 Shaw, Sophie (2025-06-18). "We tried Halara's viral summer clothes. Here are the styles we think are worth shopping | CNN Underscored". CNN . Archived from the original on 2025-06-20. Retrieved 2026-02-06.
  9. 1 2 Wang, Junjie (2022-05-20). "Who is China's next Shein?". Vogue Business . Archived from the original on 2025-04-01. Retrieved 2025-04-01.
  10. 1 2 Cohen, David (2021-11-19). "Becoming Shein: Chinese Retailers Eye the Global Fast-Fashion Market". SixthTone . Archived from the original on 2025-03-31. Retrieved 2025-04-01.
  11. ↑ LaBianca, Julianna (21 July 2024). "Is Halara Legit? What to Know Before You Shop". BestLife . Archived from the original on 2025-04-25. Retrieved 2025-04-01.
  12. ↑ Zwieglinska, Zofia (2024-05-15). "How Halara is harnessing machine learning and crowdsourcing to drive sales". Glossy . Archived from the original on 2025-03-23. Retrieved 2025-04-01.
  13. ↑ Smith, Allison (2025-04-02). "Halara's new loyalty program turns customers into product testers". Modern Retail . Archived from the original on 2025-11-16. Retrieved 2025-10-09.
  14. 1 2 Hyman, Jasmine (2025-11-28). "Halara review: Before you shop TikTok's fave activewear brand, here's our unfiltered thoughts..." Cosmopolitan . Retrieved 2026-02-06.
  15. ↑ Miller, Marissa (December 7, 2021). "11 trendy pairs of women's flared pants to wear this winter". USA Today. Archived from the original on November 10, 2024. Retrieved March 31, 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  16. ↑ Javed, Saman (August 26, 2021). "Is Gen-Z bringing back the skort?". The Independent . Archived from the original on July 6, 2022. Retrieved March 31, 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  17. ↑ Truffaut-Wong, Olivia; Flanagan, Hanna (April 26, 2024). "The 20 Best Exercise Dresses to Master the Tenniscore Trend". Cosmopolitan . Archived from the original on December 13, 2024.
  18. ↑ Daniels, Melissa (2024-03-14). "Why Halara is aiming for engagement after viral TikTok-driven sales". Modern Retail . Retrieved 2026-02-06.
  19. ↑ Earley, Brigitt (2024-12-11). "Is Insta- and TikTok-Famous Halara Worth Shopping?". Good Housekeeping . Archived from the original on 2024-12-26. Retrieved 2025-04-01.
  20. ↑ "Beijing News" (PDF). Capital Today . 18 June 2021. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 April 2025. Retrieved 1 April 2025.
  21. ↑ "HALARA 2025 Company Profile: Valuation, Funding & Investors | PitchBook". Pitchbook . Retrieved 2025-04-01.
  22. ↑ Rebecca Jennings (July 10, 2024). "The glorious return of the skort". Vox . Archived from the original on October 6, 2024.
  23. ↑ Pastore, Alexandra (March 4, 2024). "TikTok Darling Halara Leans Into Its Expertise for SoCinched Social Media Campaign". Yahoo News . Archived from the original on October 12, 2024. Retrieved April 15, 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  24. ↑ Ruben, Howard (June 3, 2024). "DTC activewear brand Halara launches first pop-up shop". Yahoo News . Archived from the original on October 12, 2024. Retrieved April 15, 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  25. ↑ Morris, Malique (June 4, 2024). "TikTok Viral Brand Halara Enters the Real World". The Business of Fashion . Archived from the original on October 6, 2024. Retrieved March 31, 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  26. ↑ "Athleisure brand Halara makes brick-and-mortar debut". Chain Store Age . Archived from the original on 2025-07-20. Retrieved 2025-10-09.
  27. ↑ Stolyar, Brenda (December 8, 2021). "11 Viral TikTok Gifts That Are Actually Worth It". Wired . Archived from the original on December 14, 2021. Retrieved March 31, 2025.{{cite magazine}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  28. ↑ Daniels, Melissa (March 14, 2024). "Why Halara is aiming for engagement after viral TikTok-driven sales". Digiday . Archived from the original on October 18, 2024. Retrieved March 31, 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  29. ↑ Montalti, Victoria (15 April 2024). "Taylor Swift Wore A TikTok-Favorite Garter Skirt To Coachella — & It's Under $40". Refinery29 . Archived from the original on 2025-12-05. Retrieved 2025-10-09.
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