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Nasty Gal

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For the Betty Davis album, see Nasty Gal (album).
Nasty Gal Inc.
Company typeSubsidiary
IndustryApparel
Founded2006; 18 years ago (2006)
FounderSophia Amoruso Edit this on Wikidata
HeadquartersLos Angeles, California, U.S.
Key people
Robert Ross, CFO[1]
Sheree Waterson, CEO[2]
ProductsApparel, accessories
RevenueIncrease£98.8 million [3]
Number of employees
200 est. (2014)
Parentboohoo Group plc
WebsiteNastyGal.com

Nasty Gal is an American fast-fashion retailer that specializes in fashion for young women. The company has customers in over 60 countries.[4] Founded by Sophia Amoruso in 2006, Nasty Gal was named "Fastest Growing Retailer" in 2012 by Inc. magazine.[5] Nasty Gal is based in Los Angeles. In 2017, the company was purchased by the BooHoo Group out of Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code.

History

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In 2006, while working as a campus safety host at Academy of Art University, Amoruso launched an eBay store based in San Francisco, selling old pieces of clothing. The store was named Nasty Gal Vintage, the name being inspired by Betty Davis.[6] The eBay store sold vintage fashion that Amoruso sourced from secondhand stores.[7]

MySpace was the primary form of communication for the store in its early days.[8][9] In June 2008, Amoruso moved Nasty Gal Vintage off eBay and onto its own destination site.[citation needed] In 2009, Nasty Gal moved into its first warehouse space in Berkeley, California, and soon after to a 7,500-square-foot warehouse in Emeryville, California.[4] Amoruso has emphasized in interviews the importance of social media to Nasty Gal’s growth.[10]

In 2010, Nasty Gal moved its headquarters to Los Angeles, California.[citation needed] The company received $9 million in investments in early 2012, followed by $40 million in August 2012 from venture capital firm Index Ventures.[11]

By 2012, the online retailer employed approximately 110 people and had opened an additional distribution center in Shepherdsville, Kentucky, while its 2011 revenue reached $24 million, marking an 11,200% three-year growth rate.[7]

In 2014, Nasty Gal opened its first brick and mortar store in Los Angeles at 8115 Melrose Avenue.[citation needed] The store had Nasty Gal footwear, apparel, accessories and intimates.[12]

On January 12, 2015, Amoruso announced that Sheree Waterson would take over as CEO of Nasty Gal.[citation needed] Waterson, formerly president of Nasty Gal, became partners with Amoruso to evolve its retail presence on a larger scale. Amoruso continued as founder and executive chairman.[13] Waterson also joined the Nasty Gal board of directors alongside Amoruso and Index Ventures partner, Danny Rimer.[13]

In March 2015, a second brick and mortar store opened in Santa Monica.[14]

In 2016, Nasty Gal filed for bankruptcy.[15] The British-owned BooHoo Group announced in February 2017 that they had purchased Nasty Gal.[16]

In November 2017, Nasty Gal opened its first UK pop-up shop on London's Carnaby Street.[17][18]

Controversies

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In 2015, a lawsuit was filed accusing Nasty Gal of allegedly firing four employees because of pregnancy, in violation of California laws.[19]

It has faced criticism online in a variety of publications due to its allegedly "toxic" work environment and numerous negative reviews on Glassdoor from unhappy employees.[20][21][22][23]

Original collections

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Nasty Gal's original label launched in 2012 and consists of limited-edition styles.[24] In September 2012, Nasty Gal debuted its first Fall/Winter 2012 Collection, Weird Science, during New York Fashion Week.[25] Since then, the company has continued to launch various collections. It launched its first footwear collection, Shoe Cult by Nasty Gal, in August 2013.[26] In 2014, Nasty Gal debuted three additional in-house collections: the vintage-inspired Nasty Gal Denim Collection,[27] Nasty Gal Swimwear,[28] and Nasty Gal Lingerie.[29] Nasty Gal also collaborated on a swimwear line with Minimale Animale in 2014.[30] They collaborated with M∙A∙C Cosmetics on a capsule collection of lipsticks and nail polish in December 2014.[31]

Expansion into publishing

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In 2012, Nasty Gal released the first issue of what was planned to be a semiannual "lifestyle magazine", titled Super Nasty, which featured spreads on "fashion, music and culture," and was included free in customers' orders. Amoruso functioned as an editor-in-chief.[32] Contributors and photographers for the first issue included Terry Richardson, Hugh Lippe, Jeff Hahn, Alexandra Richards, Syd tha Kyd, Langley Hemingway, and Girls writer Lesley Arfin.[33]

The second issue was in spring 2013 and included Kesh, model Sidney Williams, Io Echo, Haley Wollens, Phoebe Collings-James, Charli XCX, and Akiko Matsuura.[34]

In 2014, Nasty Gal founder Amoruso published the book #GIRLBOSS.[35] Following the book’s release, Amoruso launched the GIRLBOSS Foundation to inspire women to take their careers into their own hands. The foundation awards grants each quarter to women with creative projects.[36]

In April 2017, Netflix released a show, Girlboss, loosely based on the book. The series was cancelled after season 1.[37]

References

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  1. ^ Lockwood, Lisa (23 December 2013). "Nasty Gal Makes Two Key Hires". WWD. Retrieved 26 December 2013.
  2. ^ Shu, Catherine (12 January 2015). "Nasty Gal Founder Sophia Amoruso Steps Down as CEO". TechCrunch. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
  3. ^ "Annual Report 2020" (PDF). Retrieved 22 June 2020.
  4. ^ a b "Naughty in Name Only". New York Times. 2013-03-24. Retrieved 2013-04-29.
  5. ^ "Nasty Gal Inc. Profile". Inc. 2012. Retrieved 2013-04-29.
  6. ^ "Nasty Gal clothing company — as red-hot as its founder's lipstick". Los Angeles Times. August 26, 2012.
  7. ^ a b "From eBay Store to a $24 million Business", Inc., April 16, 2012
  8. ^ Butler, Bethonie. "'Girlboss' is so two-thousand and late". The Washington Post.
  9. ^ Fishman, Elana (2017-04-20). "Everything Netflix's 'Girlboss' Gets Right (and Wrong) About the Nasty Gal Story". Racked. Retrieved 2021-08-05.
  10. ^ Sukhraj, Ramona. "#GIRLBOSS: How Sophia Amoruso Took Nasty Gal from eBay to $70M Empire". www.impactplus.com. Retrieved 2021-08-05.
  11. ^ "Fashion Phenom Nasty Gal Raises $40 Million", Forbes, August 26, 2012
  12. ^ Moore, Booth (20 December 2014). "Sophia Amoruso brings her Nasty Gal and more to Melrose Avenue". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 26 February 2015.
  13. ^ a b "Nasty Gal Founder Sophia Amoruso Hands over CEO Role | Re/Code". Archived from the original on 2015-01-13. Retrieved 2017-06-03.
  14. ^ "Nasty Gal opening second store in Santa Monica". LA Biz.
  15. ^ O'Connor, Clare. "As Nasty Gal Files Bankruptcy, Founder Sophia Amoruso's Fortune Decimated". Forbes. Retrieved 2016-11-13.
  16. ^ Marfil, Lorelei (2017-02-28). "Nasty Gal to Remain in Los Angeles, According to New Owners Boohoo Group". WWD. Retrieved 2017-03-01.
  17. ^ "Nasty Gal to open first UK pop-up - The Industry London". www.theindustrylondon.com. Retrieved 2017-10-31.[permanent dead link]
  18. ^ "Nasty Gal launches first UK pop-up". Drapers. Retrieved 2017-10-31.
  19. ^ Merlan, Anna. "Lawsuit: Nasty Gal's #GIRLBOSS Fired Employees For Getting Pregnant". Jezebel. Retrieved 2016-11-13.
  20. ^ "Nasty Gal Employees Describe The Company Environment As "Toxic" After New Lawsuit". BuzzFeed. 10 June 2015. Retrieved 2016-11-13.
  21. ^ "What Nasty Gal Can Teach Us About the Importance of Corporate Culture". Career News. 2015-06-22. Retrieved 2016-11-13.
  22. ^ Chapin, Adele (2014-09-02). "Nasty Gal Employees Say Sophia Amoruso's a Bad GirlBoss". Racked. Retrieved 2016-11-13.
  23. ^ Merlan, Anna. "'Everything Really Hit Rock Bottom': How Nasty Gal's Culture Went Nasty". Jezebel. Retrieved 2016-11-13.
  24. ^ "Nasty Gal To Launch Debut Collection". MTV.com. August 16, 2012. Archived from the original on 2013-04-04. Retrieved 2013-06-10.
  25. ^ "Nasty Gal Launches 'Weird Science,' Their First In-House Line". SheFinds.com. August 24, 2012. Retrieved 2013-06-10.
  26. ^ "Here Is Nasty Gal's New Footwear Line 'Shoe Cult,' Plus Pricing". Racked.com. August 19, 2013. Retrieved 2013-08-19.
  27. ^ Yotka, Steff. "Nasty Gal Launches Denim". Fashionista. Retrieved 22 March 2015.
  28. ^ Bryant, Kenzie (12 March 2014). "Hey Spring Breakers, You Can Now Shop Nasty Gal Swimwear". Racked. Retrieved 22 March 2015.
  29. ^ Irvin, Connie (21 August 2013). "Nasty Gal Debuts New Footwear Line 'Shoe Cult'". Kontrol Mag. Retrieved 22 March 2015.
  30. ^ Yotka, Steff (18 April 2014). "The Checklist". Nylon. Retrieved 13 April 2015.
  31. ^ Hou, Kathleen (21 October 2014). "MAC is Doing A Beauty Collaboration with Nasty Gal". NYMag. Retrieved 13 April 2015.
  32. ^ "Nasty Gal clothing company — as red-hot as its founder's lipstick", LA Times, August 26, 2012
  33. ^ "Lesley Arfin", IMDb
  34. ^ "Super Nasty issue 2". NastyGal.com. Archived from the original on 2013-06-03. Retrieved 2013-06-10.
  35. ^ Baitz, Alison (8 May 2014). "The 'Nasty Gal' Invasion: Sophia Amoruso Wants to Create an Army of #GIRLBOSSes". The Daily Beast. Retrieved 26 May 2015.
  36. ^ Edwards, Tanya (25 August 2014). "Monday Morning Refresh: How to Pay It Forward Like Nasty Gal CEO Sophia Amoruso". Glamour. Retrieved 26 May 2015.
  37. ^ Otterson, Joe (June 25, 2017). "'Girlboss' Canceled After One Season at Netflix".
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