On

How do you scale your startup without losing its soul? (And, let’s be honest—when your house is on fire, culture is not the intuitive thing you think about fixing first, but shouldn't it be?) As founders and operators, we know the pressures of scaling—faster growth, leaner teams, and endless fires to put out. But what happens to the culture that got you here? Can you really keep that entrepreneurial energy alive as you add hundreds (or thousands) of people? In our latest episode of the Follow the Gradient podcast, Christian and I sat down with Noa Perry-Reifer, Chief People Officer at On, to explore how ON grew from 100 to 3000 employees while aiming to keep their startup spirit intact. A few takeaways from our conversation with Noa: 👉🏼 𝐅𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐬𝐞𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐨𝐧𝐞: The priority founders place on culture—and how they model those values—has a huge impact on how the culture evolves as the company scales. 👉🏼 𝐂𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞: Hiring, onboarding, and empowering employees are critical to ensuring the culture scales with the company. 👉🏼 𝐒𝐚𝐟𝐞𝐠𝐮𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞: Clearly define and communicate values (and no, putting the values on the wall doesn't change 𝘢𝘯𝘺 behavior), then bring them to life through everyday actions and storytelling. 👉🏼 𝐄𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞: Be this by introducing flexible vacation or no-approval expense policies, it empowers employees and maintains agility Listen to the full episode on Spotify, YouTube, Apple Podcast, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

The second installment of the On × POST ARCHIVE FACTION (PAF) collaboration is here. Reinterpreting the flow and form of the human body in a trail running collection. Crafted for nature’s extremes, and performance on the trails. ↘ Discover the capsule. https://lnkd.in/e43tFRJr

Go behind the scenes of the Black In Sport Summit 2024 – bringing together voices from media to commerce, sports marketing and more in fireside chats and panel discussions to give perspectives on leadership and culture in all aspects of sport. "It’s an incredible honor to be partnering with BIS and attending the 2024 summit. I was thrilled to join a dynamic community of passionate sports enthusiasts, from seasoned professionals to those eager to break into the industry. The opportunity to connect, collaborate, and share ideas with such driven individuals is truly inspiring. I can’t wait to see what we can achieve together." - John Williams, Head of Sales EMEA at On. BIS is an organization dedicated to celebrating black achievement in sports, amplifying the stories of diverse professionals in the industry paving the way as role models for young talent looking to kickstart or boost their careers in sports and beyond. 🚀 #BIS #DreamOn

What makes an On bag unique? Designed for performance down to the last detail, the launch of On bags has been in the making for about four years. Meet Director of Design Direction, Lorena Vonk and Accessories Creation Sr. Lead, Lexi Beeken as they walk through the process of designing this category from scratch, drawing inspiration from our Swiss roots, the Alps and old smuggling routes in the mountains.  🏔 ↘ Read the full story and more in our Journal: https://lnkd.in/eQpdtu-W #DreamOn

A city so nice they named it twice. New York, we’re back for more. 🍎 Home to On’s very first store, our second location in Manhattan is now open.  👀 Located on 5th Avenue in Flatiron, our latest flagship spans more than 4000 sq ft, seamlessly combining our signature streamlined design language with its neoclassical landmark structure, and featuring materials inspired by the surrounding urban environment. It’s New York after all. Stop by for a visit during marathon week – and anytime after. 162 5th Ave. See you there. 👋

Always on the lookout for a better way. 🌿 To mark the release of the new Cloudeasy Cyclon™, Dana Müller, our Franchise Lead for Performance All Day and Cyclon™ products, and Georg Singer, Senior Lead for Innovation Business Development sat down in conversation with Daniel Solomita, the CEO of Loop Industries – the organization that helped make the Cloudeasy Cyclon™ a reality. Dive into the discussion to get a feel for the opportunities and challenges around fiber-to-fiber recycling, and how we're working to further embed circularity into processes, designs and business models at On. The latest edition to our Cyclon™ program, the Cloudeasy Cyclon™ is designed to be recycled, made with just 15 parts (half of the average industry standard), 90% post-consumer recycled upper, 35% bio-based Speedboard® and 40% bio-attributed midsole from waste oil. ↘ Read the full interview: https://lnkd.in/ezDaMeBk #Cyclon #DreamOn

Dreaming of the Swiss Alps? ⛰ Spend the day outside with Zendaya.  Explore the power of movement – and the magic of trying new things. Discover the Zendaya edit: https://lnkd.in/daxzHsNN #DreamOn

LOEWE x On. The collaboration continues. The Cloudtilt LOEWE makes its return in a new wave of colors. Co-designed in new dark sand, cherry and orange tones and ready for nature’s richest seasons. Explore at https://lnkd.in/ghNg7zkE #LOEWExOn #DreamOn

🇦🇺 Our retail team just landed in Melbourne, opening our first store in Australia. Designed with color gradients and textures inspired by the city’s best running spots, our newest store spans 390 sq m located within the Emporium. And you know the drill – find all the latest head-to-toe looks for however you like to move.  We kicked off opening week with a community movement session and Run Club starts this Thursday at 6 pm. Join us weekly to run through some of Melbourne’s iconics like Flinders Street Station, the MCG, Fitzroy Gardens, and Birrarung Marr. Stay tuned for more and see you at 287 Lonsdale St. 🚀

Windy City anyone? We're opening our doors in Chicago today, just in time for marathon weekend. Located in the historic Gold Coast district, our latest flagship store spans more than 4500 sq ft across a single level, no distractions to find your best looks for running, training, tennis and lifestyle. Taking inspiration from Chicago's rich industrial and design history, the space features exposed metal ceilings and a color palette inspired by the city's bridges. Throughout the center, wood nuances pay homage to the city’s deep connection to the Art Deco movement. Come meet us at 1043 N Rush St, Chicago. Join our Run Club every Wednesday at 6pm and, if you’re in town for the marathon next week, we have a special line up of events. Check it out here: https://lnkd.in/gH4hqaTJ