# Title Nine: Missy Park (October 2021)

- Show: [How I Built This](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this)
- Published: 2025-04-07
- Length: 1h 20m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-04-07-title-nine-missy-park-october-2021

## Summary

Missy Park, founder of Title 9, explains how she bootstrapped a women's sports apparel company in 1989 with only $30,000, initially selling third-party brands via mail-order catalogs. She identifies the sports bra as a critical product after noticing high demand in early orders, allowing the company to survive cash flow crises and eventually reach profitability without outside investment. Park discusses the strategic decision to remain private to maintain culture and mentor female executives, despite facing a significant downturn in 2014 due to a slow shift to digital sales and the devastating impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on retail stores.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-04-07-title-nine-missy-park-october-2021#t=0) Introduction: Missy Park and Title 9
- [4:58](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-04-07-title-nine-missy-park-october-2021#t=298) Early Life, Yale Athletics, and the Genesis of Title 9
- [18:26](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-04-07-title-nine-missy-park-october-2021#t=1106) Working at The North Face and Fisher Mountain Bikes
- [28:39](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-04-07-title-nine-missy-park-october-2021#t=1719) Launching the First Mail-Order Catalog with $30,000
- [40:11](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-04-07-title-nine-missy-park-october-2021#t=2411) The Pivot to Sports Bras and Early Cash Flow Struggles
- [50:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-04-07-title-nine-missy-park-october-2021#t=3000) Staying in the Game: Bootstrapping and Hitting Singles
- [1:01:16](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-04-07-title-nine-missy-park-october-2021#t=3676) Leadership Challenges, Maternity Leave, and Digital Shift
- [1:08:58](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-04-07-title-nine-missy-park-october-2021#t=4138) Navigating the 2014 Downturn and COVID-19
- [1:15:37](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-04-07-title-nine-missy-park-october-2021#t=4537) Succession Planning and the Future of Title 9

## Topics

- [Starting a product company](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/starting-a-company)
- [Pricing, margins & unit economics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pricing-and-unit-economics)
- [Direct-to-consumer & e-commerce](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/direct-to-consumer)
- [Leadership, teams & culture](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/leadership-and-culture)
- [Growth, exits & acquisitions](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/growth-exits-and-acquisitions)
- [Validation & product-market fit](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/validation-and-product-market-fit)

## Most relevant to

founders before launch, early-stage companies, companies scaling up

## Mentioned

- Title 9 (company)
- The North Face (company)
- Fisher Mountain Bikes (company)
- Lululemon (company)
- Athleta (company)
- Outdoor Voices (company)
- Moving Comfort (company)
- Pearl Izumi (company)
- U.S. Bank (company)
- U.S. Women's National Soccer Team (company)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [044: Turning customizable jackets into a multi-million dollar business, Elyse Daniels of Exodus Wear](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2017-03-14-044-turning-customizable-jackets-into-a-multi-million-dollar-business-elyse-dani) (Product Startup)
- [Founder Feature: Tabi and Meena Hoshmand of Tursh](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2025-11-14-founder-feature-tabi-and-meena-hoshmand-of-tursh) (The Startup CPG Podcast)
- [095: Solve End-User Pain for Consumer Product Success](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2021-09-29-095-solve-end-user-pain-for-consumer-product-success) (Product Startup)
- [Founder Feature: Marilyn Yang of Popadelics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2025-04-11-founder-feature-marilyn-yang-of-popadelics) (The Startup CPG Podcast)
- [006: Customizable swimwear with Kelsey Duffy of Versakini](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2016-04-19-006-customizable-swimwear-with-kelsey-duffy-of-versakini) (Product Startup)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-04-07-title-nine-missy-park-october-2021. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to How I Built This.