They sound like the punchline for a raunchy joke, but Butt Shield and Stink Free are actually moneymakers for 2Toms, a Dublin-based company that sells products to prevent blisters, chafing and odors during sports. In fact, they are so effective, Olympic runner Jeff Galloway reached out to the company and is now endorsing the products.
2Toms was founded in 2002 and now has five product lines with 20 total options within those product lines. The company grew 45 percent during the first three quarters of 2012, and was down slightly in the last quarter before growing again this year. Its products are in 2,000 stores, including Roadrunner Sports, Fleet Feet and Olympia sports. This year it has already added 48 new stores to sell its products.
We want to promote a happy, active lifestyle, without people getting injured, says founder Tom Judd, who now runs the company with Katie Smith, director of operations (the second Tom has since left the business). That ties into Jeff Galloway as his whole model is staying injury free and ours is preventing the chafing and blisters and odor and smell. With Galloway's help, 2Toms will reach many more people, as his newsletter has 110,000 subscribers and the product will be featured in the merchandise section of his website. In addition, the company plans to expand beyond its biking, running and hiking markets into soccer, a market with more depth as it reaches beyond adult sports into high school and college.
Smith says 2Toms is looking to roll out more products as opportunities arise. The company recently added a fifth employee and has a network of 18 sales reps nationwide. 2Toms introduced two new products in 2010 and one in 2011 (a laundry detergent). This year it launched Butt Shield, a different take on its sportshield roll-on. We're totally playing on the name of it and having fun with it. It's not a new product, but a new SKU, and we will promote people using it more in the biking world, Smith says
Besides selling merchandise, 2Toms is also heavily focused on educating its customers. Its website has a knowledge section that is regularly updated and contains information about blisters, eating and exercise routines and a regularly updated blog. The company also supports athletic endeavors, including Walk off the War, a hiking program for wounded veterans, and Bikes Belong Foundation, that focuses on bike safety.
For more information, visit 2Toms.com.
Current Issue - May 2024