GREG TAYLOR, founder of Step One, Australia’s leading online underwear brand, shares the success story behind his comfy undies empire and reveals why his environmentally-friendly, anti-chafe briefs are the best support for your “boys”…
THE MAN BEHIND THE UNDIES
Aside from being a professional rower back in the day, Greg Taylor founded or led various tech start-ups prior to creating Step One. He founded Clipp in 2012 (an app consumers can use to pay their restaurant bill from their phones), started ecoffeecard.com.au in 2011 (a coffee loyalty program) and betterdeal.com.au in 2005. He knew he wanted to do something online in the e-commerce space and says the Step One opportunity just landed in his lap.
Tell us about Step One and what exactly you’re all about.
Step One is all about comfort for your, umm… let’s say, “the boys”. We have spent a lot of time investigating the best way to support the boys, and we’ve cracked it. Not your nuts – we’re talking underwear. And it’s something we take for granted – chafe and ride-up can derail your entire day before it even begins. Get some Step Ones on your bum and you’ll see why we think these are the world’s most comfy undies. Sorry for the pitch. I can’t help it – Chafe and ride-up affected me so much that I redeveloped underwear from the ground up. On that note, ethics and sustainability are just as important to us. We can track the impact of our production from plantation to package through independent certification. We are BSCI and FSC Certified, meaning that every pair of Step Ones are made knowing our workers are fairly treated, and our bamboo is harvested without deforestation. In fact, we employ a closed-loop, natural irrigation system – even our packaging is home compostable. Our difference is that we care.
When did the company start up and why did you decide to do so?
The company started because of a particularly uncomfortable chafing situation. My wife Sophie and I were out hiking in New Zealand, as we enjoy our adventure holidays, when suddenly I started experiencing unbearable chafing. I was literally tucking my shorts between my legs to put something to stop the skin-on-skin rubbing. Then I started thinking, during the hike, there has to be a product that stops this. I researched products that could help me before my next hike, but I couldn’t find anything suitable, so I set out to create my own product. I began the company from my bedroom with $10,000. There was a year of trial and error, finding the right factories and the right materials.
How did you set out to create underwear that would eliminate chafing?
I used to wear bike shorts sometimes under my shorts but having a synthetic fabric everywhere just made me feel so sweaty and uncomfortable. I would feel like I was swimming in a swamp! The first step was to work out how to eliminate friction between your thighs. We tested a few different types of fabrics by cutting up bike pants and sewing different fabrics in to help us come up with a solution for the initial problem. From there, we needed to work out which fabrics wouldn’t ride up and which would be the most comfortable. It is one thing to keep chafing at bay, however if the underwear is not comfortable, or used for only one activity, we wouldn’t be able to create something unique. We wanted to have a product that people swore by and that is what was created.
Tell us more about creating your environmentally-friendly undies.
I created an innovative low-resistance “UltraGlyde” panel – bike shorts style fabric that sits between your thighs to reduce friction. That is a big point of difference for us. We also use an FSC Certified organic bamboo viscose fabric, bamboo viscose is breathable, moisture wicking and anti-bacterial. Bamboo is one of the world’s fastest-growing renewable materials, requiring no irrigation or pesticides to grow compared to other crops such as some cotton farms. FSC certification not only ensures that the production process is environmentally responsible, but we can be 100% certain that organically-grown bamboo we purchase and our people are equally treated with respect. A Certificate of Custodianship is audited at every step to ensure our supply chain meets the standard that we hold ourselves to.
What has business been like since launching Step One?
Business has been great. We really hit the ground running and we have had some amazing feedback, although there have been some learnings along the way. Some of our stats include…
- A pair of Step Ones is sold approximately every eight seconds across Australia, the UK and the USA.
- More than 50,000 five-star reviews across Google, Product Review and Trust Pilot.
- 10,000 pairs of the women’s bikini range were sold the week it launched!
- Step One is one of very few companies to float onto the ASX with a sole owner and no outside investment. The business grew incredibly quickly, taking over six percent of the Australian men’s market share in just four years.
- Over 1.2 million customers have purchased from Step One.
And you now have a women’s range.
Yes, we are always trying to push ourselves to do more and be better. Our foundation was in the men’s space, however our product team has designed a women’s seamless range that is incredible. I haven’t tried it of course, but we’ve soft launched it and feedback has been amazing. I’m really excited to get it out there.
How do you come up with the quirky ideas for your underwear designs?
We have a design team in our office and are always bouncing ideas off each other – the design side is always fun. Aside from our core range of block colours, we love to come up with ideas that are a bit cheeky. Our new “Pea-cocks” collection, for example, has been a winner. We also like to design a pair for Valentine’s Day, Christmas, Halloween and the milestones, too. We bring out a new design every few weeks so there’s a lot to choose from. Bangin’ Bananas, Pandamonium and our new Racers are among my favourites, but let’s just say there’s more to come.
Why should MAXIM readers sign up to Step One undies?
Honestly, once you try Step One, you won’t go back. Yes, they solve a problem, but even if chafing isn’t a problem for you, I stand by it – they are the most comfortable underwear you will ever try. Sign up! We offer a first pair guarantee – if you’re not happy in 30 days, give us a call and we’ll refund you. Next time you put your pants on and experience ride up, think of Step One. We have solved this, as well as chafing and breathability. Combine all this with our plantation to package sustainability and ethical practices and we are doing all of the right things.
What’s next for Step One?
That’s a secret! No, not really, but we intend to introduce the Step One formula to the rest of the world. We’re looking to expand our pattern development and carry on creating a bit of cheeky fun. We’re also applying the Step One technology for purpose-driven womens’ garments. There is so much I could talk about but let’s just say there’s more to follow!
For more on Step One go to stepone.life or follow on Instagram at @stepone.life
Interview by SANTI PINTADO
For the full article grab the July 2023 issue of MAXIM Australia from newsagents and convenience locations. Subscribe here.
