By Mike Romero
It started on accident. Colby Bauer was bodysurfing in Hawaii and lost his wallet. Out of necessity, he started holding his cards and cash together with a rubber band. His girlfriend (now wife and business partner) McKenzie decided to make him a permanent solution. She sewed him a better-looking sleeve out of stretch fabric.
Soon, whenever he’d take out his wallet to pay for something, he’d get comments on McKenzie’s invention. Thread Wallets was born.
After a successful Kickstarter campaign, the Bauers took Thread from $140,000 to $4 million in sales in 3 years (from 2016-2019). Growth has continued since then, showing a 1900% increase in the last 5 years.
Recently, Mayor Michelle Kaufusi announced Thread’s plans to expand their headquarters, choosing to reinvest in Provo instead of moving elsewhere. Together, they identified the old Ford car dealership at 241 West Center. Thread and Provo City will work together to renovate this new location and turn it into Thread’s new corporate headquarters.
Check out the video below to learn more about Thread CEO Colby Bauer, and to catch a glimpse of the new space – complete with an indoor skate park.
Provo Tribune: Local News for the Provo/Orem Area 