Jabari Marshall, co-founder of Leimert Mountaineering, said Outside Festival and Big … [+]
REI’s Path Ahead Ventures is dedicated to supporting Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) founders specializing in the outdoor apparel market. It’s estimated that only 1% of outdoor industry founders identify as people of color, yet more than 30% of outdoor industry participants identify as people of color. Path Ahead Ventures was founded in 2021 to bridge that gap. “Path Ahead Ventures provides founders with comprehensive support across capital, community, resources and programs. Since our founding, we’ve partnered with over 70 founders, provided approximately $700,000 in grants to 51 companies and invested $4 million in 23 companies,” said Susan Viscon, vice president and executive director of REI’s Path Ahead Ventures.
Non-financial resources
The program focuses on making a positive impact on founders and their businesses by providing not only financial assistance but also resources to help BIPOC business owners scale their brands. Recently, many of Path Ahead Venture’s partners attended Outside Festival and The Big Gear Show in Denver, Colorado, where founders attended and interacted with other founders to showcase their products and network with industry professionals. “It was really great to be able to connect with other founders who are in the same shoes as me,” said Muna Mohamed, founder of Kalsoni, a Minneapolis, Minnesota-based brand that creates culturally appropriate activewear for women of African and Somali descent.
Founder Muna Mohammed caters to the needs of the Islamic market
Mohamed started her business three years ago after seeing a need for culturally responsive sportswear to encourage African women, especially girls, to get active. Her inspiration came from her background in exercise physiology and her participation in a research project where girls designed their own activewear. Mohamed’s experience as a basketball player and coach has highlighted the need for female role models in the sports world to boost girls’ confidence. She discovered the REI program Path Ahead Ventures when she was constantly looking for opportunities to connect with mentors and build community.
“Muna has been a changemaker since she started a girls’ basketball team in a majority-Muslim community where young girls were not encouraged to be active. She knows that being active is key to health and she wants everyone to be active, so creating Karsoni was a way to fill a need to provide great activewear to women and girls looking for modest options,” Viscon said.
REI’s Path Ahead Ventures offers new founders the opportunity to build community and connections. … [+]
The Path Ahead Ventures program helped her refine her pitch, build her confidence, and make meaningful connections with other founders and the local REI team. The Kalsoni brand’s presence in REI stores has grown, making its products available to a broader demographic than just Muslim women. “My goal was to have products for Muslim women, but because we’re located inside REI, we have women from all walks of life coming to shop,” Mohamed said.
Participating in the REI program gave Carsoni more business credibility and helped Mohamed apply for other prestigious programs, such as the Tory Burch Fellowship. Mohamed credits REI with opening doors for her business and giving her a sense of community and support. “We’re excited to see our products selling in the Minneapolis store and that she’s engaged with the store team,” Viscon said.
Black Outdoor Enthusiasts
Jabari Marshall and Ronald Mead are co-founders of Leimert Mountaineering, an apparel brand focused on the Black experience, specifically in the outdoor sphere. “We saw an opportunity to usher in a new outdoorsman,” Marshall said. Born from a shared vision during a snowboarding trip, Leimert Mountaineering aims to fill a gap in the market by catering to the unique needs of Black outdoor enthusiasts through culturally resonant performance apparel. “Our products truly address the needs of this new consumer,” Mead said in an interview. The founders emphasized their focus on creating products that are culturally relevant and meet high-performance standards.
Participation in the REI Path Ahead Ventures program has helped provide Marshall and Mead with resources, community support, and valuable industry connections. “We love what the Reimert team stands for and how they create high-quality performance apparel that reflects their community. They’re focused on customers who are outdoor enthusiasts but feel unrepresented in the current climate,” Viscon says. In an interview, Marshall explained how the program was able to make up for the founders’ lack of experience. “We had a lot of experience in the design and marketing side of the business, but we lacked knowledge on the operations side, and REI supported us in that area,” Marshall said.
“I think the value of this program (REI’s Path Ahead Ventures) is the commitment to really support companies at our stage. It’s a really great, authentic program,” Mead said. The brand’s mission includes cultivating a sense of community through live events and outdoor activities, not just selling apparel. By showcasing relatable, authentic imagery and storytelling, Leimert Mountaineering aims to make the outdoors more accessible and appealing to Black people.
REI has a vision to make the outdoors accessible to everyone.
Path Ahead Ventures’ core investment criteria include companies that specialize in the outdoor, fitness, health and wellness, or sustainability markets and whose founders identify as BIPOC. Companies must be incorporated in the United States or Canada. REI is continually committed to creating an inclusive environment where everyone can enjoy the outdoors. In 2023, the company launched Outside in 5, a mission to ensure that every person in the United States is within five minutes of a park, trail or time spent outdoors. Path Ahead Ventures is another way REI continues its ongoing efforts to create an inclusive outdoor environment for everyone.
