Ayr, a fashion label with a team of just 17 employees and no physical offices or headquarters, has seen sustained revenue growth thanks to its fully virtual operation. Diane Cha, the head of merchandising at Gap Inc.’s Athleta brand, recently joined the company as its chief merchandising officer, working from her bedroom in Orange County, California.

Despite many fashion labels rushing their employees back to the office post-pandemic, Ayr permanently shut down its New York City offices and is now operating completely virtually. Co-founder Maggie Winter and vice president Brice Pattison work from their home in Ojai, California. This shift has allowed the company to recruit top talent from across the country and has been a significant factor in its recent growth. In fact, when Mallory Snyder posted an opening for a senior creative manager on LinkedIn, she received over 5,000 applications within three months.

“Operating virtually has given us access to a deep well of talent that we wouldn’t have been able to tap into otherwise,” Winter says. With virtual teams spread across different time zones from Ojai to Coatesville, Pennsylvania, Ayr’s success is truly a testament to the power of technology and remote work.