Speed is still a goddess
Pruzan founders Jessie Hyman and Lexy Copithorne speak about building a brand for women that marries quality, comfort, and performance
Of the 1.34 million people who entered the ballot for the 2027 London Marathon (a staggering 18% increase on last year), 179,000 of them were women aged 20-29 – the largest breakdown category.
Jessie Hyman and Alexis Copithorne, founders of Pruzan, a running apparel brand that aims to produce performance clothing with a chic, feminine aesthetic, don’t believe running apparel brands are catering to women as much as they could or should be.
“I think we’re still not getting the innovation that the men’s side is getting,” says Jessie. “There’s not as much variety or quantity of brands catering to women. Overall, the innovation is sitting a bit behind where the men’s side is.”
Choices, choices, or a lack of
Estimates suggest that only 20% of new running brands are founded or led by women. Sure, there are new brands like Raide and Currently led by men who are listening and creating products specifically for women, and there are somewhat more established brands like Bandit and Acid who have a female designer in their ranks, but being fully female-led lends a different perspective.
The trailblazers were Oiselle and Rabbit, and along with the likes of Mileoff and Stolt, Pruzan is one of the new female-focused brands that are doing what they can to remedy the situation by offering thoughtful product worthy of the group of people who are an enormous, essential reason why we’re in this running boom.
One of the places Jessie and Lexy have highlighted for innovation is the humble sports bra. It’s often said that a good pair of shoes is all you need to go for a run, but as with all old tropes, that fails to include women. As Katherine Douglas of Running Wylder pointed out to me one time, “You need a pair of shoes and a good bra.”
