After Nearly a Decade in Business, Western Brand Tecovas Expands Into Wholesale For the First Time
After announcing a robust store opening slate this summer, Tecovas isn’t slowing down.
The nearly 10-year-old Western brand will enter the wholesale market for the first time this fall, according to President and CEO David Lafitte, who joined Tecovas from Deckers Brands in 2022.
As the first phase of expansion, Tecovas is working with nine retailers to cover 36 stores in 10 states, including Texas, Colorado, Montana, Wyoming, Nebraska, South Carolina, North Carolina, Arizona, Georgia and Michigan.
Key retail partners include National Roper Supply, Lebo’s, Texas Boot Company, Boots Etc., Murdoch’s Ranch & Home Supply, Howell Western Wear, Bullocks Western Store, Crossbow and Junk Gypsy.
“Our entry into the wholesale market will help increase our brand awareness,” Lafitte told FN in an interview. "We know there are regions where our e-commerce business is very strong, but there are regions where it's unlikely that we'll have stores. So now we'll have the ability to build physical distribution points in those places and reach new customers in person."
Lafitte noted that working with local, independent stores that are deeply ingrained in the Western lifestyle is core to the brand's wholesale strategy.
"These independent, family-owned, family-operated businesses are very real in the Western space and have a very real consumer base," the CEO said. "So I think it's also important to make sure we can get deeper roots as we look to expand in the Western market. We have a lot of traditional people who like our products and brand values, so we prefer to go to them, and we don't want to open stores in big box malls."
Lafitte expects wholesale to account for 20% of the business in the next few years. "We want our wholesale distribution to be very well managed," he added. "We don't want to overextend and then suddenly start destroying our market. So we're going to be patient. We see wholesale as a long-term strategy."
Looking ahead, Lafitte said the company will expand its wholesale presence in the coming quarters. To achieve this goal, Tecovas will attend its first Dallas WESA West trade show in January. The brand will also open a permanent showroom in Dallas Market Center that customers can visit at any time.