Look Good

HLN x Roar North

If it’s everyday activewear and functional fitness clothing you’re after, Roar North should be your go-to. HLN caught up with owner Ami Lowes to find out more...

Written by High Life North
Published 16.01.2021

How did Roar North come about?

Roar North was developed by myself at the back end of 2019. I was forever looking for leggings that were fit-for-purpose for both training and everyday wear. I was keen to research products and test them out in my local gym. Once I had an array of products that were tried and tested, it was time to launch!

This was a jump and it could have been a flop. I was entering the unknown. I’ve worked in the leisure industry for 15 years now, working at all levels up to senior management before taking a step back after having my son, Dougie. This is what gave me the opportunity to start a new venture and try out something new. I’ve always had a decent business head on me as I also own and run two holiday lets, (although they aren’t doing so well at the moment – thanks Covid!).  

How did you launch?

To start with I set up on Etsy, as it’s low risk and a decent platform. I was making a few sales a week which was great – it was ticking over nicely and heading in the right direction. Then lockdown 1.0 came and I was able to start giving it my all. I was furloughed from work, I had all this spare time and Shopify were doing an offer of 3 months free listing on their platform. So I went for it, signed up to Shopify, created an online shop and started to flood social media with pictures, stories, videos. 

Roar was continuing to grow in the right direction. I went back to work in August and orders were still coming in thick and fast. It was really great, and I really appreciated the fact that people were loving the products and supporting small businesses. I did several local pop-up shops and managed to get some Christmas fairs in before we went into the next lockdown. The run-up to Christmas was crazy and this was when I asked for help from my friend, Lucy. Lucy took over the day-to-day orders and is going to take on more responsibility as we grow. This is allowing me to look at other aspects of the business, such as more pop-up shops, more collaborations with gyms and new and exciting products and opportunities. 

Do you do pop-up shops?

Yes! If you’d be interested in us coming to your gym to do a pop-up shop, please get in touch and we can arrange that once we have a bit more normality back! Recently, we’ve done a collaboration on leggings with CrossFit Fife and are in the process of another with Method Fitness. 

It really is great to see what started off as a gamble, pay off. I have a super supportive network of friends and family to help out too, which always makes things easier!

To shop the collections, visit Roar North or visit their Facebook or Instagram.

Ladies 'Naked' Leggings - £28.99

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Animal Print 'naked' leggings - £20.00

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Ladies Booty shorts - £18.99

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Ladies strappy sports bra / crop - £17.99

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Bobble Hat - £11.99

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Unisex washed look sweatshirt - £25.99

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@misterwoodywoods Collab Unisex T-shirt - £12.00

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Ladies High Neck Vest - £19.99

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Unisex Tie Dye Socks - £8.99

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Unisex Baseball 3/4 length tee - £18.99

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Unisex Long sleeved t-shirt - £19.99

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Unisex Hoodie - £31.99

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