Figs (company)

FIGS

Company type	Public
Industry	Apparel, Healthcare clothing
Founded	2013
Founder	Heather Hasson, Trina Spear
Headquarters	Santa Monica, California , United States
Area served	United States, Australia, United Kingdom
Key people	Heather Hasson (Co-CEO), Trina Spear (Co-CEO)
Products	Scrubs, medical apparel, face masks, activewear, loungewear
Website	www.wearfigs.com

FIGS (presented as FIGS) is a U.S.-based apparel company headquartered in Santa Monica, California. The firm specializes in selling scrubs and related healthcare professional attire. Established in 2013 by Heather Hasson and Trina Spear, the duo currently share the role of co-CEOs.

History

Heather Hasson and Trina Spear launched FIGS in Los Angeles in 2013. Hasson recognized an unmet need for well-fitting, practical medical uniforms, distinct from athletic wear brands like Lululemon, Under Armour, and Nike. At that time, Spear was working on Wall Street and contributed to shaping the business strategy.

Utilizing their personal funds, Hasson and Spear created a new option to traditional scrubs, initially marketing directly to hospital employees. They secured $2 million in seed capital in 2013, followed by an additional $3 million over the subsequent two years. In 2016, Campfire Capital—backed by Lululemon—led a $5 million Series A funding round.

In 2017, entrepreneur Thomas Tull invested $65 million, becoming the majority shareholder. Other notable investors include Will Smith, Irving Place Capital, former Lululemon CEO Christine Day, and Mohr Davidow Ventures. FIGS is based in Santa Monica and joined the Endeavor startup accelerator program in 2015. By 2018, the company had accumulated $75 million in funding and was highlighted by Inc. for achieving a three-year growth rate of 9,948%.

In 2019, FIGS launched a pop-up retail location in Los Angeles. Amid the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, the company broadened its product range to incorporate face masks and expanded into Australian and UK markets. That year saw revenues double to $263 million with profits approaching $50 million.

In May 2021, FIGS submitted paperwork for an initial public offering aiming for a $3 billion valuation. On May 27, 2021, it became the first company led by two female cofounders to debut on the New York Stock Exchange, also breaking ground by providing early access to retail investors through platforms such as Robinhood.

Following nearly four years of legal proceedings, a California jury ruled in November 2022 to dismiss all allegations against FIGS brought by a competitor accusing the company of false advertising and deceptive business conduct.

Operation

FIGS offers scrubs alongside complementary medical apparel including tops, pants, underscrubs, lab coats, activewear, and loungewear. Their scrub designs incorporate exclusive antimicrobial fabric with four-way stretch capabilities and practical pockets.

All merchandise is sold exclusively through the company's online platform. In 2020, FIGS anticipated revenue surpassing $250 million, largely fueled by its enhanced scrub products. The company maintains a distribution center located in City of Industry, California.

Charitable operations

Through its Threads for Threads initiative, FIGS donates scrubs to countries facing shortages of medical clothing. By 2019, more than 500,000 scrub sets had been provided across over 35 nations. Early in the COVID-19 crisis of 2020, FIGS contributed 30,000 scrub sets to New York hospitals including Bellevue and Mount Sinai and regularly sent care packages to frontline healthcare workers. Additionally, the company arranged production of upwards of one million N95 masks which were donated to hospitals and medical personnel.

Marketing

In October 2020, FIGS released an advertisement that showed a female osteopathic doctor dressed in neon pink scrubs, holding a book titled Medical Terminology for Dummies upside down, alongside a close-up of a blank badge marked "DO." This video faced significant backlash for being sexist, especially from women and osteopathic medical professionals, leading to its removal.

Following the controversy, founders Hasson and Spear issued an apology and pledged to engage expert consultants for future marketing efforts to avoid similar missteps. Subsequently, FIGS collaborated with the American Osteopathic Association, committing $100,000 in support of the organization.