Flexible finance, global opportunities
Once a small side hustle, Nimble Activewear now has an annual turnover in the millions... and its founders earned a lot of Qantas Points along the way.
Growing a side hustle into a global brand is no easy feat. But for Nimble Activewear founders Katia Santilli and Vera Yan, a passion for the gym and equally agile business moves have helped them to grow at about 50 per cent annually for the past five years.
“The dominant activewear brands made great quality apparel but they weren’t flattering, while fashion brands made garments that looked good but couldn’t stand up to a sweaty workout and regular washes,” recalls Yan.
This gap in the market drove the pair to launch Nimble in 2013, engaging designers and manufacturers to create workout gear that, well, worked. In 2016, they hit a turning point. “Two key things happened for us,” says Yan. “We started investing in digital marketing and we opened our first physical store in Bondi Beach, turning us from a side hustle into a real living and breathing brand.”
Around the same time, the young business owners signed up for the American Express® Qantas Business Rewards Card. “Having up to 51 days to pay for purchases1 on the Card was really attractive for us,” says Yan. “Being able to front-end funding meant we could future-proof the business and invest in things ahead of time, like creating really beautiful representations of the brand that resulted in a huge uptake.”
With no pre-set spending limit on the American Express Qantas Business Rewards Card, businesses can access up to $1 million in a line of unsecured funding across a 12-month period.2 This allowed the co-founders to expand Nimble even further, opening a Melbourne store in 2017 followed by one in Brisbane in 2021.
“Using the Card means we’ve been able to earn millions of Qantas Points for purchases we would have made anyway,” says Santilli.
“So when we opened our Brisbane store, we sent the whole team there on flights booked with Qantas Points. This year we’ll be going to the UK and the US to explore some exciting business opportunities and be able to pay for those flights with Qantas Points too.”
The thriving business now has over 30 employees, annual turnover in the millions and customers all over the world. But despite their success, Yan and Santilli say they’re prouder of the sustainability initiatives they’ve implemented along the way – saving more than two million plastic bottles from landfill to create Nimble’s signature MoveLiteTM fabric.
“There’s a huge connection between movement and mental health,” says Yan. “When you move your body, you’re a better, more balanced person. And operating a sustainable business that’s focused on wellbeing feels like an extension of that.”