The Interview: Acid Running founder Oliver Powe on growing a cult brand and launching womenswear

Acid Running opened a three-month pop-up store at 33 Dirty Lane in South East London’s Borough Yards at the beginning of April, a five-minute walk from the brand’s design studio and office space – right in the heartland where it was founded in 2022.

Having built up a loyal following and dedicated running community, Acid Running will be launching its first womenswear collection in May to further spread its growing appeal. Founder of the brand, Oliver Powe, tells TheIndustry.fashion all about it.

What did you do before launching Acid Running in 2022?

I was with online retailer The Active Kollection (TAK), which focused on fashion-forward running and cycling brands. I came on board to help curate the product offering and grow e-commerce and operations. I later became a director, and we sold the business in 2020 in order to help fund the launch of Acid Running.

What prompted you to launch Acid Running?

Looking at the product offering for runners, even those we were selling at TAK, I felt there was either a strong technical focus but a neglect of brand vision, or a strong brand world but a neglect of product quality. I was particularly disappointed by how many ‘boutique’ running brands were selling either ‘merch’ (cotton blanks) or the same cheap, sticky polyester that the big players were selling, with the only difference being a more contemporary slogan or logo.

Who was the target market?

To simplify things, we positioned ourselves as the target market. Every other part of our wardrobe, be it tailoring, casual, resort wear, or even underwear, was considered and reflected our identity, but in running we were having to choose between default incumbents who we had no affinity to.

The first thing we had to do was perfect the fabrics, as we wanted a particular hand-feel, drape and quality without sacrificing performance. This led us on a long fabric journey to a mill in Taiwan.

What do you think has spurred the surge in popularity of running?

I think running has always been popular to a certain extent, but the framing has completely changed in the last decade or so. Most of us had been taught at a young age to understand running as a competitive sport, in the context of the athletics track or cross country, so naturally only a handful of individuals will experience a positive association.

However, once you reframe running as a lifestyle, where competition can sit comfortably within this, then it opens up a whole world of possibilities and inclusion. This cultural shift has simply grown exponentially as people with an active or latent interest in running see more and more lifestyle runners out there.

Is running now considered a cool thing to do then?

Running has always been cool in my opinion. I’m a bit of a contrarian, so maybe running was actually cooler when it was less ‘popular’! All jokes aside, we predicted a massive cultural shift in the TAK days, and it has taken hold faster than we anticipated. There are so many wider trends at play that have informed it, but generally the concept of a balanced lifestyle has become the norm. The idea that you can enjoy vices in moderation and exercise regularly as part of a fulfilled life is now the status quo.

Our garments fit into that lifestyle perfectly and we’re very open in our development process about the need to serve our runners with something that can excel during their 10km run - and then be suitable to meet their partner or friends immediately after for a coffee or pint.

Would you say running has become a long-term cultural movement?

It’s an interesting one, as running has always had a strong countercultural essence, but that has been amplified in the last decade or so. In an attention economy that values docility and consumption over activity and participation, running has become an act of dissent. Those with countercultural or subversive instincts have been drawn to running, knowingly or not, and that goes some way to explaining why, in a short space of time, we’ve built such a strong community around Acid.

Where does the brand name originate from?

Acid is a play on words reflecting the duality of running - the suffering and the transcendence. Acid refers to the physical discomfort of lactic acid and then the reward, the clarity that comes through the altered state of consciousness.

What is your brand logo and why have you selected that?

The logo continues this duality in a particularly British way, as the split face of the hare shows the wild, true nature of the hare, whilst the skull is a vanitas reminder that the runner’s fate is to suffer.

What are your best-selling pieces?

Our ‘2-in-1 Shorts’ with the inner liner have been our best-selling style since day one, and we really made our name with those. We’re also known for the quality of our fabrics and our T-shirt fabric is a unique blend that offers performance but also a lovely hand-feel and drape.

In 2023, we began introducing graphics into our T-shirt range, and they are now a mainstay of our collections. A lot of our runners buy them purely as lifestyle fashion pieces outside of running. We also do shell jackets, long-sleeved tops, vests, caps, socks and other accessories.

What new products have you introduced for SS26?

Key items from the first drop of SS26 include our new half-tights, which take the technical principles from our best-selling ‘2-in-1 Shorts’. Our runners have been demanding these for some time, so it’s a great relief we can now offer them.

How many pop-up stores have you done previously and where?

In the past, our London pop-ups have taken place in Chelsea on King’s Road, such as the Acid ‘Runner’s Deli’ we did from 8-18 January. They’ve been a nice opportunity to showcase the brand on an iconic high street and, after the Acid heartland of CPD (Camberwell/Peckham/Dulwich), West London is probably our second biggest audience.

We also did a House of Felix x Acid Running pop-up in Barcelona - our first overseas - for the annual half marathon, the ‘Barcelona Half’, from 12-14 February.

Why has Borough Yards in South East London been selected for your current pop-up?

Our studio and office space is about a five-minute walk from the Borough Yards store, just by The Rose & Crown pub on Union Street. It’s made life much easier being able to operate the store and central business in the same area.

In partnership with Someday Studios, the Borough Yards strategy creates a structured pathway for emerging brands, supported by improved visibility, hands-on guidance on merchandising and integrated promotional activity, reinforcing its role as a dynamic destination. In line with evolving customer trends, it is committed to cultivating an experience-led retail destination.

We’re in one of eight white-boxed units on Dirty Lane East, which complement the existing mix of independent shops, restaurants and experiences, including Paul Smith, Ace & Tate, Ted’s Grooming, RunLimited and Malin + Goetz.

Our 390 sq ft store opened on 1 April and will run until the end of June 2026, with a view to extending it or making it permanent depending on how well it performs.

How is it performing so far, and did you do anything to coincide with the London Marathon?

I’d say the pop-up has been performing pretty well so far. It’s a retail experience for fans of the brand from across the country, and of course international visitors to this popular area of the city. During the London Marathon, we saw a hike in sales and visitors to the pop-up - a real mix of UK-based customers as well as overseas. We partnered with specialist training service Coopah for the marathon and gave away one-off Acid/London Marathon T-shirts to VIP guests at the Coopah after party.

Who are your key wholesale accounts?

Direct-to-consumer (DTC) still makes up the vast majority of our sales, but we have a number of key retailers, including 18Montrose on London’s Regent Street, Sportsshoes in Shoreditch, SMI in Edinburgh, Urban Industry in Eastbourne, Flat Mountain Living in Berlin and Odda in Madrid. On wholesale, we’re represented by Larch Lifestyle in Hackney - headed up by Damien Ladwa.

How has the brand grown since launch?

Like any new brand with no audience, the first 12-18 months were really challenging. But after that initial period, growth has been strong. In 2024, we grew by 300% and last year we grew by 99%. We’re forecasting growth of 96% this year.

Are you a keen runner yourself?

Yes, I’ve been a keen runner since my late teens. As someone who pushed it a little hard on the partying front, running was always a useful tool to get fit and healthy again. I’ve had quite a few injuries in the last few years, so these days I tend to run every other day - with one long run on the weekend. I used to ‘rawdog’ it with no music or anything, but now my go-to listen is Radio 4’s ‘This Cultural Life’, or something too niche to admit!

My current trainer rotation includes runners from Hylo Athletics, Reebok and Asics. There are no Acid Running trainers currently, but that might change in the future.

When will womenswear launch exactly and what will it consist of?

Womenswear is launching in the coming weeks. Fans of the brand will recognise the fabric quality and garment storytelling. The entire range is designed by women for women, so naturally there will be some clear divergence as well. Our audience is already 30% female with our menswear range, so we’re incredibly excited to serve our female runners to the next level.

Do you also hold community running events?

We typically host runs in different locations, collaborating with various stores or food and drink brands, usually every other month or so. In the last few months, we've held runs with Caravan Coffee in North London, Miznon & Neer in Notting Hill and House of Felix in Barcelona.

Is community very much a key element in growing your brand?

Community is essential to the brand, and we try to do the best we can to serve our global community with a digital presence. That means speaking directly to our audience about things that are important to us as a brand, and how they intersect with running - be it art, literature, music or philosophy.

How big a following does Acid Running have on social media and which channels do you see as the most important?

We have around 40,000 followers on social media and we're most active on Instagram (33.2K followers). That’s the channel we launched on, so it’s been a consistent place to update our runners on all things Acid.

How else do you intend to grow the brand further this year?

The big moment for us is definitely the launch of womenswear this month. We’ve been working on it for a number of years, so it’s an exciting step for the business.

It’s been created by Bronte McKenzie, Head of Product for Acid Running, who previously was a product developer and sourcing manager at Oner Active and also a global product developer at Fila. A runner herself, she has fully led the creation of the womenswear range - repositioning the solo female runner at the heart of the design process with a collection that serves runners of all competencies and at all distances.