BRET'S STORY
As a former alpine ski racer, I grew up enamored by a global athlete base donned in tight and bright athletic wear. That love resurfaced ten years later when I discovered the world of trail running and its community of outgoing, incredibly enthusiastic, and happily stylish adventurers. On one of my first races I wore a pair of neon green digital print women's tights I’d received as a birthday gift, which earned heaps of hi-fives and even a cover shot on the race recap. I left that race thinking, how fun would it be to have a trunk full of these to share!?!
Back home, the only fun tights I could seem to find were for women – men’s tights were scarce at best, always black or camouflage, and lacking in basic performance elements. So I bought women’s tights and wore them on treks, trail runs, ski tours and other adventures in national parks all over the country and world: California, Patagonia, Iceland, Alaska (, Utah, Arizona, Hawaii, Peru, and Norway. On each trip, the tights painted the trails with a bit of happiness, and spurred spirited conversations with those met along the way.
Each adventure inspired a different outdoors design that seemed simply too much fun to create and share. With a passion for the wild, and understanding of athlete needs across multiple sports, I decided HeyHeys was the next fun community building project!
Across the world in Sweden, longtime friend and adventure bud, Naseem, was thinking the same thing...
NASEEM'S STORY
I started donning bright colors as a surfer, on my first trip to Australia ten years ago. The California beaches inspired my love for surfing, that Australia trip inspired my love for travel, and the combination fueled an immersion in the culture of neon boards, boardshorts, and beach hostels that extended roots across Hawaii, Peru, Costa Rica, Italy, Panama, Puerto Rico, Vietnam, Indonesia, and the Dominican Republic.
Meanwhile, Bret's infectious love for skiing helped channel more of my time towards the mountains around Lake Tahoe, California, culminating with living in Truckee and snowboarding every day through 70 feet of snow and one of the best winters on record. That winter, my wardrobe adopted a new color palette highlighted by bright turquoise and lime, which I took on a set of adventures over the next few years, seeking out the corners of the world, in northern Norway, Patagonia, Alaska, and New Zealand, each trip inspiring the next.
Bret started talking about his idea for HeyHeys in the spring of 2015, right as I was preparing to leave California for a six month trip around the world. I travel because I love adventure, spontaneity, exploration, and new people. HeyHeys sows each of these passions into the seed of an awesome community. It was fitting that I was ending my trip in Sweden, where friendly faces greeted me with a constant customary stream of "hej hej!" and I realized I had to be a part of the fun!
