654: The Hoodie That SAVED Their Business ($5M in 2 Years) | Boys Lie

The Foundr Podcast with Nathan Chan

Nathan Chan

Entrepreneurship, Business, Marketing

4.9 • 664 Ratings

🗓️ 23 April 2026

⏱️ 54 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Tori Robinson and Leah O'Malley launched Boys Lie as a cosmetics brand with 16+ SKUs and generated $250,000 in revenue in year one—against $250,000 in debt. But they discovered customers only wanted the two branded hoodies, not the makeup. Sitting on mountains of unsold inventory and ready to quit, they sent a blind gift to Gigi Hadid. Two months later, Gigi stepped out in their "Boys Lie Goodbye" sweatsuit in a paparazzi moment during her breakup with Tyler Cameron. Demand exploded overnight. They pivoted entirely to apparel and never looked back. In this raw conversation, the co-founders of Boys Lie break down why they'll never do unsolicited celebrity gifting again despite it saving their business, the brutal employee embezzlement that cost them significantly and the financial controls they built to prevent it, and why they turned down a major buyout offer two years ago. What you'll learn in this interview: • How they launched with 16+ cosmetics SKUs but only sold two hoodies • Why they were ready to close shop before the Gigi Hadid moment changed everything • How they sent blind gifts to Gigi Hadid through personal connections at Coachella • Why they waited two months before Gigi wore their sweatsuit in a paparazzi moment • Their pivot from cosmetics to apparel after realizing clothing spoke for itself • Why they'll never do unsolicited celebrity gifting again—all gifting is now pre-approved • The brutal employee embezzlement that cost them a significant amount • How they now use three accountants cross-checking credit card reconciliation • Why they're jaded about hiring and don't trust people immediately anymore • Their long-term vision: House of Brands with sub-brands under Boys Lie • Why they turned down a major buyout offer two years ago • What's coming: Girls Lie, potential baby line, and a secret February 2027 launch • How their podcast "Boys Lie Stories" gives customers a voice and drives the brand If you're building a fashion brand, navigating a major business pivot, or trying to build cultural resonance without massive ad budgets, this conversation will fundamentally change how you think about product-market fit, celebrity moments, and building a brand that emotionally connects. SAVE 50% ON OMNISEND FOR 3 MONTHS Get 50% off your first 3 months of email and SMS marketing with Omnisend with the code FOUNDR50. Just head to ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://your.omnisend.com/foundr⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to get started. WANT TO GROW YOUR BRAND WITH META ADS? Join the Foundr Operators Waitlist → ⁠⁠⁠https://foundr.com/operators⁠⁠⁠ HOW WE CAN HELP YOU SCALE YOUR BUSINESS FASTER Learn directly from 7, 8 & 9-figure founders inside Foundr+ Start your $1 trial → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.foundr.com/startdollartrial⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ PREFER A CUSTOM ROADMAP AND 1-ON-1 COACHING? → Starting from scratch? Apply here → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-start-application⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ → Already have a store? Apply here → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://foundr.com/pages/coaching-growth-application⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ CONNECT WITH NATHAN CHAN Instagram → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/nathanchan⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/nathanhchan/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ CONNECT WITH BOYS LIE Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/boyslie/ Website → https://boyslieofficial.com/ Leah's Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/leahomalley/ Tori's Instagram → https://www.instagram.com/reptar/ FOLLOW FOUNDR FOR MORE BUSINESS GROWTH STRATEGIES YouTube → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://bit.ly/2uyvzdt⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Website → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.foundr.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/foundr/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/foundr⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Twitter → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.twitter.com/foundr⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/company/foundr/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Podcast → ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.foundr.com/podcast⁠

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey Founder Fam, I want to talk to you about something super exciting. We're officially partnered with Omniscend, the email marketing and SMS platform built specifically for e-commerce founders. We've been recommending OmnisCent to Founder students for a while now because it just works. Whether you're launching your first store or you're scaling the seven figures, it really helps you automate your marketing and get real results.
0:24.0	Did you know on average, Omnysend customers make $68 for every $1 they spend, which is an insanely good return on investment.
0:32.6	And because you're part of the founder community, you get 50% off your first three months with the code Founder 50.
0:39.3	Just head to Omnisend.com forward slash founder without the E to get started.
0:45.0	All right, now let's jump back into the show.
0:48.6	So what happens when you launch a cosmetics brand but discover customers only want your branded hoodies.
0:55.0	You're sitting on mountains of unsold makeup inventory, ready to close up shop, you think you're
1:00.7	done, then Gigi Hadid steps out in your sweatsuit and changes everything overnight.
1:06.2	Well today's guests, Tori Robinson and Leah Omali, founders of Boys Lie, the fashion brand born from
1:12.0	Heartbreak, that became a cultural phenomenon. After launching with 16 plus cosmetic skews,
1:17.1	they discovered customers were only buying their two branded hoodies. So stuck with
1:20.7	unsold inventory and ready to quit, they sent a blind gift to Gigi Hadid. Two months later,
1:26.4	Gigi wore their goodbye sweatsuit in a paparazzi moment. Demand
1:30.0	exploded and they pivoted entirely to apparel. So in this conversation, you're going to discover
1:34.6	why they never do unsolicited celebrity gifting again despite its saving their business previously,
1:40.9	the brutal employee embezzlement that cost them significantly and the financial
1:44.3	controls they built to prevent it, and why they turned down a major buyout offer two years ago.
1:49.2	This is a real raw conversation around building a brand that resonates culturally and why
1:53.5	sometimes your biggest pivot comes right and about to give up.
2:00.0	Hear the stories. Learn the proven methods and accelerate your growth and future through entrepreneurship.
2:07.7	Welcome to the founder podcast with Nathan Chan.
2:13.6	Welcome, Tori and Leah. You guys launched a cosmetics brand that generated $250,000 in revenue
	...

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