YETI is an American outdoor manufacturer company based in Austin, Texas. Yeti specialize in products such as ice chests, vacuum-insulated stainless-steel drinkware, soft coolers, and related accessories.
History
Roy and his older brother Ryan Seiders grew up in Driftwood, Texas, and spent their entire childhood outdoors. With their father being an entrepreneur that designed a fishing rod epoxy, the brothers would get to see up close how to be successful with your own business. Ryan graduated from Texas A&M University in 1996 and Roy graduated from Texas Tech University in 2000. In 2006, Ryan started Waterloo Rods and sold the company nine years later. Roy, an angler and hunter, began his career making custom boats that were designed for fishing in shallow depth areas on the Texas Gulf Coast after graduating from Texas Tech.The avid outdoorsmen became frustrated with the quality of the coolers available and founded YETI that same year to invent their own high-end cooler in response. In June 2012, two-thirds stake of the company was purchased by private equity firmCortec Group for $67 million. In July 2016, the company filed with the Security and Exchange Commission for an initial public offering with plans to list on the New York Stock Exchange under the "YETI" symbol. The company was seeking a valuation of $5 billion and hoped to raise $100 million, but retracted the IPO two years later, in March 2018, citing "market conditions". As of January 8, 2018, Yeti still was a sponsor of the PBR and the YETI “Built for the Wild” event. In April 2018, the National Rifle Association, via its National Rifle Association Institute for Legislative Action, announced that YETI refused to be a vendor. The NRA then dropped YETI as its official supplier of coolers. This led to a backlash from NRA members, leading some to destroy YETI products they had already purchased. In response to the NRA's comment, Yeti contacted The Washington Post and said that the NRA's comment was "inaccurate" and that neither the NRA nor the NRA's Foundation was targeted, and other organizations were also included in the removal of a “group of outdated discounting programs”. On October 25, 2018, YETI became a public company via an initial public offering of 16 million shares at a price of $18 per share.
Products
The company targets niche markets of high-end hunting and fishing enthusiasts, outdoors-men, beach goers, and water enthusiasts. YETI sponsored professional outdoors-men and hunting and fishing shows. Products range in price substantially, some upwards of $500.
Coolers
YETI's "Tundra" series of coolers ranges from 20 quarts to 350 quarts. The Tundra line can be locked with two padlocks, making it certified bear-resistant according to the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee. YETI also makes soft-sided coolers called the "Hopper" series. The "Hopper" series coolers are designed to be lightweight and more transportable than standard YETI coolers. YETI is known for its expensive coolers. They have an 82-gallon cooler that is their most expensive one, that sells for $1,300. YETI has many other products besides the coolers but this is what they are best known for. The idea of these coolers was founded by the Seiders brothers: two outdoorsmen who felt there were not any coolers that could keep their catch, kills, and beverages cold for a longer period of time. The brothers teamed up with a factory in the Philippines to create an "indestructible cooler", with superior ice retention.
Other products
YETI sells drink-ware products under the "Rambler" line ranging from 10 ounces to one gallon in size. The company also makes an ice bucket called the "YETI Tank".
Sales
YETI sells their products to select retailers such as Academy Sports and Outdoors, Bass Pro Shops and other retailers to include Amazon Marketplace, West Marine, Cabela's, REI, and Dicks Sporting Goods. YETI's sales increased from $147.7 million in 2015 to $468.9 million in 2016. YETI’s earnings in 2015 were $14.2 million and in 2016 were $72.2 million. YETI's top customer accounting for "30% of revenue in 2017".
Accolades
Outside magazine calls Yeti's Rambler "the Best mug ever made". Field & Stream stated that the release of Yeti's Base Camp Chair officially declared the company's "dedication to a comfy derrière". Business Insider calls them "a status symbol in the United States".
