Skims began as a correction: A rebrand before launch, a shapewear edit that prioritized tone, fit, and feel, and a product system built for clarity and performance. What started as a personal workaround scaled into a multi-billion-dollar brand, underpinned by disciplined categories, house fabrics, and distribution that keeps both margins and momentum.
Origins, Course-correction & a product system
Skims formally launched in 2019, co-founded by Kim Kardashian with Emma Grede and Jens Grede. The project was announced first as “Kimono,” but public backlash over cultural appropriation prompted a rapid rebrand to Skims before the first drop – a pivotal early decision that aligned the name, the marks, and the mission. The mission was practical: comfortable shapewear that actually matched a range of skin tones and bodies, built from materials that compress where needed, and disappear where they should.
Kardashian’s oft-repeated origin point – dyeing and cutting garments to create shades and shapes that previously did not exist – became a brief for an edited launch in September 2019. The opening architecture (“Seamless Sculpt,” “Core Control,” “Fits Everybody”) mapped use cases and ran from XXS to 5XL. The drop sold out within minutes, with reported first-release sales of about $2 million. That early response validated three pillars that still define the line: inclusive shade ranges, pragmatic size grading, and tactile performance fabrics that hold their shape under daily wear.
As categories expanded into underwear, loungewear, swim, and accessories, the brand kept the same playbook.
Platform power, partnerships, and sport
Skims’ distribution has balanced owned channels with selective wholesale and high-visibility partnerships. Early Nordstrom placement signaled mainstream confidence without flooding the channel. Culture-forward collaborations – notably a 2021 Fendi x Skims capsule – proved the codes could translate up-market, while outfitting Team USA loungewear for Tokyo 2020 and Beijing 2022 introduced a performance-adjacent register. In 2023 Skims became the official underwear partner of the NBA, WNBA, and USA Basketball, extending credibility with athletes and fans.
In February 2025, Nike and Skims announced NikeSKIMS – a multi-year collaboration focused on women’s athletic apparel, footwear, and accessories – with the first drop launching in September 2025.
Capital, valuation, and operating discipline
Fundraising rounds in 2021, 2022, and 2023 marked step-changes in valuation and capacity, but the growth story has leaned as much on unit economics as on headlines: high repeat rates in core programs, deliberate SKU proliferation (new colors and cuts inside established fabric platforms), and tight campaign windows that convert attention into sell-through. Reported revenues of roughly $500 million in 2022 and projected revenues around $750 million in 2023 illustrated the model’s ability to scale while keeping the assortment legible.
In November 2025, Skims raised $225 million in a funding round led by Goldman Sachs Alternatives, bringing its valuation to $5 billion.
The marketing mix moved from earned buzz to high-impact, celebrity-led campaigns without losing the early advantage of community-driven fit testimonials. And after years as a digital-first label, Skims began a measured store rollout in 2024 – opening its first permanent store in Washington, D.C., then additional U.S. sites, followed by a four-level Fifth Avenue flagship in December 2024 that framed fabric and fit as gallery-worthy design. In May 2025 the company signed a 10-year lease for a 12,000-square-foot Regent Street flagship in London, slated for summer 2026, while international presence continued through selective wholesale and concessions (including Selfridges and Harrods).
In parallel, March 2025 reporting indicated that SKKN by Kim, the beauty business, would be consolidated into Skims – a portfolio move that positioned Skims as a broader lifestyle platform while the company calibrated relaunch timing and brand architecture.
Taken together, Skims has a clear model: an inclusivity mandate that’s operational (shades, sizes, fabrics) a naming and materials system that functions like house codes, and distribution calibrated to protect price integrity and momentum.
This piece was prepared in collaboration with Jamie Zwirn and Emilie Mentrup.
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