Long before transforming a golf apparel idea into an industry mainstay—now in 2,500 pro shops with flagship stores in New York and Palm Beach—Andrew Redvanly was battling for pucks in frozen corners and absorbing hard-nosed checks into the boards.

The Jersey native grew up playing junior hockey, earned all-state honors, and chased his puck dreams at Suffolk University in Boston, a Division III program.

“That is one little regret. I could probably have played for one of the top schools but I just didn’t have the wherewithal of how to get situated,” Redvanly admitted. “But overall, I wasn’t going to make it to the show.”

When he hung up his skates, realizing a pro career wasn’t in the cards, he set his sights on becoming a sports agent—helping others chase their dreams. He interned with the NHL, had a stint at CAA, and eventually landed a job at a local agency when the Great Recession made bigger gigs scarce. But the industry’s cutthroat nature—the dog-eat-dog battle for clients and the idea of profiting off the backs of athletes’ efforts—made him rethink his path.

While caddying through high school and college—primarily at Alpine Country Club in Demarest, NJ, with the occasional loop at Liberty National—Redvanly developed an insider’s view of golf culture, both on and off the course, seeing firsthand what players gravitated toward in terms of apparel and performance wear. That experience, combined with his own athletic background, sharpened his instincts for where the industry was headed. At the time, Lululemon was primarily a women’s brand, TravisMathew was gaining traction, but there wasn’t a brand catering specifically to golfers and racquet sports players.

“I thought I could create a brand for individual athletes competing in golf and tennis. I felt there wasn’t a brand catering to multiple individual sports. That was my vision.”

Redvanly had no experience in manufacturing but was determined to learn as he went. At first, he took the conventional route, setting up meetings with family offices that had previously invested in similar brands in hopes of raising capital.

“Nobody would give me a dime because I had no background in it. My family wasn’t in this industry. I was completely blind to it.”

In hindsight, he believes that naivety turned out to be a blessing. Had he known then what he knows now, he might have been too intimidated to launch the brand.

“But, I just didn’t know any better.”

So he set about bootstrapping the business. His family was firmly behind him with his cousin David Pagana, a pharmaceutical sales rep, investing in the company and soon came aboard, along with his brother Eric, a chef who had worked at Bobby Flay’s Bar Americain.

“There’s a deeper bond when you’re working side-by-side and then all of a sudden you are at Thanksgiving Dinner. Everyone is on the same vibe. Even my girlfriend now works for the company. It’s one of those things, where either you are involved or you are on the outskirts—not understanding what is going on at the dinner table discussions.”

Lately, those table discussions are centered around a new category-spawning release, to build off the momentum of their pioneering pull-up golf pants—with a faux button, working fly and belt loop—as stretchy as basketball shorts. That elasticized-waist design—something no one else was offering—vaulted Redvanly onto the first page of the Country Club leaderboard nationally when it comes to bottoms mindshare. Last year, they expanded the line with a corduroy version and now they see fresh runway in other categories.

After two years of research and development, Redvanly has debuted ‘active denim’—a cotton/poly blend pull-up variant aimed at bringing a currently banned look to fairways. While clubs have loosened their dress codes in recent years, allowing hoodies and joggers, “no jeans, no cutoffs” remains a firm red line at most clubs.

At first, Redvanly dismissed the idea outright.

“We’re an athletic golf leisure brand,” he recalled. “But then it hit me—if we do it our way, it’ll be the most athletic jean you’ll ever wear.”

Twelve years into the business, Redvanly is confident in the trust and credibility the brand has earned among golfers, believing 30-35% of existing customers will buy the jeans sight unseen.

“Denim is the one thing that is not allowed on a golf course” he said. “Imagine five years from now, if players on tour are wearing our denim. We’re looking for things as a company that are real resume builders, that nobody else is doing and I see opportunity there.”

Will clubs really ease restrictions on denim in the near future? Redvanly believes the momentum is shifting in that direction. While the old guard will probably stick to their traditional knitting, there is a growing new guard with a much more open mind.

“Some clubs will never change, but others are looking for ways to differentiate and attract players. If you give them something performance-based, that makes sense, they might say, ‘Hey, let’s let our guys play in jeans—who cares?’

Growth on the Horizon

Redvanly is eyeing a potential flagship store in Chicago but is approaching further expansion methodically. Rather than aggressively chasing new locations, the brand is taking a measured, opportunity-driven approach to retail growth—ensuring each move makes sense financially and strategically. “I don’t want to get over my skis,” Redvanly said. “A lot of brands get stuck in retail. All of a sudden, you open up 10 to 15 doors and take on long-term leases and you’re [more of] a real estate company. We will open in areas we think we can be really successful—if they’re intelligent and they work, we’ll do them,” he said.

That pragmatic mindset is non-negotiable. “We don’t do anything that loses money. We started this thing from scratch. We don’t take on $100s of millions of dollars and take on new doors for no reason.”