Diane Cha has recently left her position as senior vice president of merchandising at Athleta, a brand under Gap Inc., to join Ayr, a virtual fashion label with no offices and only 17 employees. Ayr’s head of merchandising, Cha will work from her home in Orange County, California, with her team spread across three time zones from Ojai to Coatesville.

While most fashion brands have returned their employees to the office since pandemic restrictions eased, Ayr has maintained its revenue growth by permanently shutting down its offices in Noho. Co-founder Maggie Winter and her husband Brice Pattison, vice president of menswear, work from their home in Ojai. This drastic shift has resulted in Ayr’s revenue quadrupling over three years and reaching $50 million this year.

Ayr’s virtual operations have allowed them to recruit top talent from across the country without being constrained by geographical limitations. When Mallory Snyder posted an opening for a senior creative manager on LinkedIn, she received over 5,000 applications within three months. “Opening up the team to the entire country gives us access to a deep well of talent,” Winter says.

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