Avoli raises 2.1 million dollar in funding as it secures first retail partner

Women’s footwear brand Avoli has announced the closing of a 2.1 million dollar seed round, coming in above its initial target of 1.5 million dollars with significant contribution from a range of investors, including co-founder of Altos Ventures Ho Nam.

The brand, which was founded in 2023 and particularly caters to volleyball athletes, said it would use the proceeds from the funding round to build on working capital and growth initiatives including new strategic hires, increased brand marketing and broadening the availability of its footwear.

Evidence of this latter goal has already been seen in the additional announcement that Avoli had secured its first retail partnership with sports retailer Scheels, which will exclusively sell its footwear in select US stores.

The move hopes to provide consumers with more convenient access to Avoli’s lines in response to the growing popularity of volleyball among girls and women in the US.

In a release, Avoli co-founder, Rick Anguilla, said: "In our first year as a company, we’ve seen an unprecedented demand for our footwear amongst the volleyball community, and our partnership with Scheels will make Avoli shoes more widely accessible to women and girl athletes around the country.

"Scheels’ dedication to quality and an excellent customer experience aligns perfectly with our mission at Avoli, and we look forward to working together to grow the sport of volleyball.”