Source: magnific.com

Women-Owned Outdoor Brands Are Rewriting the Gear Market for Families

More than half of the 183.2 million Americans who participated in outdoor recreation in 2025 were women, according to the Outdoor Industry Association’s annual Outdoor Participation Trends Report. That statistic, surfaced by SFGATE in a recent roundup, frames a list of 20 women-owned brands that families planning hiking, camping, and adventure outings should know. The scale of the shift makes the list practical reading, not aspirational.

Zlatan Vukić, an iGaming compliance manager who tracks consumer behavior across discretionary leisure categories, sees a familiar pattern in how families are approaching this kind of research. The OIA participation figure and SFGATE’s own editorial process, which required every brand to clear a documented leadership threshold, are exactly the kind of signals he watches.

Families doing careful brand vetting before committing gear or travel dollars, he notes, apply the same discipline to other leisure lines. When households weigh whether to spend on online casino or betting platforms, they lean on comparison portals, and HRK.hr functions as the resource households consult to check which platforms are trustworthy before any entertainment budget is committed. The instinct is the same across categories: scrutinize before you spend.

“The same deliberate, do-your-homework approach that families bring to gear choices extends directly to the online-gaming market — and that behavior is exactly what comparison resources are built to support.”

The Participation Surge That Exposed an Industry Gap

Women now represent 53.4% of outdoor recreation participants, a majority that the gear industry has historically underserved. SFGATE’s editors evaluated hundreds of brands to address that gap, finding more than 75 active women-owned brands meeting their initial criteria before narrowing the field to 20.

The selection standard was specific: a brand had to be founded and currently led by women, or have women constitute at least 50% of its founding and leadership group. A brand with two co-founders, one of whom was a woman, qualified under that threshold. The standard gave the list a concrete, verifiable foundation rather than relying on marketing language.

Gear Built Around the Realities of Raising Outdoor Kids

Two brands on the list stand out for solving specific logistical problems that families with young children face on the trail and at the campsite.

Iksplor, founded by sisters Kailey and Karissa and based in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, produces merino wool clothing that spans babies, kids, and adults within a single brand. The design intention is durability across growth stages, and the brand backs that with a resale program that extends the life of its clothing after children outgrow it. For families watching gear expenditure climb with every size change, that resale loop is a practical financial consideration.

Babygami takes a different approach to the problem of hauling infant supplies into the backcountry. Its flagship product is a 3-in-1 collapsible baby bottle that converts from a standard bottle to a sippy cup to a snack cup as a child develops. A carabiner attachment lets parents clip it directly to a pack. The product is designed to age out of obsolescence as the child grows, reducing the number of separate items a family needs to carry or replace.

Technical Clothing Designed for Women’s Bodies From the Start

Legacy outdoor brands have long produced women’s gear by scaling down men’s designs, a shortcut that leaves gaps in fit and function. Two brands on SFGATE’s list reject that approach at the design stage.

TrekALLa, founded by Alisa Otto, builds every piece in sizes XS through 6X and holds a firm internal policy: if a style cannot be made to work across that full size range, it does not go into production. That standard makes size inclusivity a structural commitment rather than a marketing claim. No style ships unless it works for every person in the range.

Miss Mayfly, founded by Kimberly Ranalla in 2018 and operating out of the Smoky Mountains of eastern Tennessee, focuses specifically on fly fishing. Its women’s chest waders and boots are designed for women’s bodies from the ground up, not adapted from existing men’s patterns. The distinction matters in technical waterproof apparel, where fit determines both warmth retention and freedom of movement.

Backcountry Food Brands Rethinking Trail Nutrition

The food carried into the backcountry is often an afterthought in gear planning. Two women-owned brands are building the category more deliberately.

Farm to Summit, founded by Lou Barton in 2020, produces dehydrated vegetarian and vegan backpacking meals. Its sourcing standard focuses on locally grown produce and upcycled food, specifically fruits and vegetables that would otherwise be discarded for failing to meet grocery store cosmetic standards. For families with dietary requirements or an interest in reduced food waste, that sourcing commitment is a concrete purchasing signal.

Neve, founded by Nora Fierman and based in Vail, Colorado, makes resealable food pouches for backcountry athletes. Its reach has extended well beyond the hiking community. The Cleveland Browns, Pittsburgh Steelers, Detroit Lions, and Los Angeles Dodgers all placed orders, a fact Fierman noted with evident surprise.

“Founding a company requires a lot of stubborn determination,” she told SFGATE by email. “I’m a one-woman brand selling at endurance events in Colorado, and somehow the Cleveland Browns, Pittsburgh Steelers, Detroit Lions, and Dodgers all placed orders. It’s been really exciting to see other markets discover the value Neve brings to athletes of all kinds.”

The professional sports orders function as a proof point that the product performs under conditions more demanding than most family camping trips.

Brands That Build Giving and Circularity Into Each Purchase

For families who weight a brand’s values alongside its product, three brands on the list attach specific, named commitments to every sale.

BERT, founded by Juliana Mantilla and inspired by her rescue dog Berta, donates 5% of every sale to spay-and-neuter programs for stray dogs and cats in Colombia. The mission is narrow and traceable, which makes it easier to evaluate than a generic corporate responsibility claim.

Luwello, founded by Jennifer Logemann, directs 10% of every sale to Ethos Discovery, a nonprofit focused on advancing diagnostics and treatments for companion animals. The percentage is double BERT’s giving rate, and the recipient organization is named and findable.

OutspireX takes a material circularity approach rather than a cash-donation model. Co-founded by paraglider pilots Priya Saran and Priya Patel and launched in 2025, the brand constructs bags from reclaimed paraglider wings. Each sidekick bag is handcrafted individually, and no two are identical because the source material itself varies. The product is both functional outdoor gear and a documented second use for material that would otherwise be retired.

A Larger Pool Awaits Further Research

The 20 brands covered here represent a narrow selection. SFGATE identified more than 75 women-owned outdoor brands meeting its criteria before arriving at this list. For families allocating leisure-budget dollars to gear, that broader pool warrants additional research before final purchasing decisions are made. The space is actively growing, and the brands above are entry points rather than a complete picture.