Running, Re-imagined.

I joined Vancouver Running Co. (VRC) almost 18 months ago wearing rose coloured glasses. I was transitioning from a much larger organization and attempting to go back to my roots, where I have always found the most belonging: Small businesses with big dreams.

Through my journey, I've generally been a high risk-taking type of entrepreneur, but the last 5 years for me was transitioning from wondering "What if?" to actually experiencing what it feels like on the other side—The good, the bad, and everything in between.

I’ve made some big bets in my life, some that have worked out and some that haven’t. But it has always been a good time, and the learnings have been priceless.

And in almost every way, this new situation was perfect for me: VRC is a locally recognized brand in my hometown. It may only have a small footprint, but there were big aspirations for us to grow and innovate in the industry. Plus, I love to run.

With VRC, I always viewed it as a high potential company with an incredibly large safety net. Worst case (as we often tell themselves), it’ll be a lot of fun and I’ll get to buy shoes at a discount in perpetuity (joking, but not really)..

So together with Rob and Becky (my partners), as well as the entire team at VRC, we set out on a mission to evolve run specialty into it’s next form, one that hopefully solves a glaring problem in the space: A lack of diversity and collaboration between retailers, brands, and communities.

Run As You Are (RAYA) is the culmination of all of these learnings, a nod to the past with a clear vision for the future. And what started out as a fun art project utilizing blockchain technology (in the form of NFTs) is now becoming a full technology-enabled platform that will build a global community of runners and EVERYONE is welcome.

What we failed to recognize at the time was just how big of an opportunity (and challenge) there was in front of us, so much so we decided to shift RAYA away from a VRC led project to a full fledged company, product, and brand itself.

Our goal is to build a highly engaged and connected community globally, one that forms a network effect through things that runners love. If we can sprinkle in and give everyone just enough of a glimpse into the future, maybe we'll finally move forward in an industry that often feels like it's going backwards.

So imagine running—But by doing so, it unlocks cool products, run experiences to discover different areas of the world, and grants you access to a library of resources and content from experts and professionals globally.

And guess what? You can join this community for FREE with zero obligations. Inclusivity is at the heart of RAYA.

Don’t worry, we’re not just throwing away our original idea. In fact, we’re elevating it by offering it as a digital collectible membership instead, where holders will be able to access additional perks and rewards through token-gated communities. The artwork is just too good to not share it with everyone =)

We'll be weaving in a ton of surprises that we have planned together with our brand partners (currently: On, adidas, Satisfy, and Ciele), our retail partners (VRC being one of them, with others announcing very soon), and our growing list of RAYA Ambassadors worldwide.

I cannot wait to share with you all what we’ve been building behind the scenes. All of the details will come very soon I promise. But for now, just know that the RAYA team is working extremely hard everyday to bring this idea (and dream) to life.?

And even though I knew that technology was somehow going to be a part of the solution and evolution of the stagnant industry, I hadn't envisioned using it in ways that encourages less time on screens and more time enjoying nature.

Stay tuned for the official announcements, but RAYA 2.0 is launching very soon =)