Solbari, the Melbourne-based UPF 50+ sun-protection apparel brand, has appointed Grayson Davis as head of sales and launched a U.S. wholesale expansion after years operating direct-to-consumer, according to Business Wire. The move responds to what the brand describes as rising demand for certified daily sun-safe clothing across specialty retail channels.
The brand sells long-sleeve tops, hats, and accessories tested to block 98 percent of UV radiation. Until now, Solbari sold exclusively through its own site and Australian stores. The new wholesale push targets U.S. specialty retailers — outdoor boutiques, resort shops, dermatology clinics — where customers already ask for verified sun protection by name. Davis, who previously led retail partnerships in activewear, will manage channel expansion and retailer onboarding.
The timing reflects a documented shift in sun-protection buying behavior. What was once a narrow beach-and-golf category now overlaps with everyday casual wear. Dermatologists have spent a decade telling patients that chemical sunscreen alone is insufficient for prolonged outdoor exposure, and that textile protection is the only reliable daily defense. Solbari's third-party UPF 50+ certification — stamped on every garment — turns a health directive into a purchase justification a retailer can hang a sale on.
The underlying mechanism: a certification mark resolves the customer's uncertainty and gives the retailer a reason to stock a higher-ticket item in a crowded apparel category. A UPF-rated long-sleeve shirt retails for two to three times the price of an equivalent fashion piece, but the certification lets the store position it as protective equipment rather than discretionary fashion. The customer who walks in asking for "something that actually blocks the sun" will pay the premium if the tag proves it works.
A small physical-product brand can run the same play without hiring a sales director. Identify your product's third-party proof point — the test result, the material certification, the safety standard your item verifiably meets. Print that mark on the product and the packaging. Then approach specialty retail one door at a time: the local outdoor shop, the swim school pro shop, the pediatric clinic with a small retail counter. Write a one-page wholesale sheet that leads with the certification and names the customer problem it solves. Offer keystone markup — double your landed cost — and net 30 terms on the first order if you can afford the float. Stock twelve units as the minimum opening order so the retailer can test without committing to a full size run. Follow up two weeks after delivery with a simple question: what sold, and do you want to reorder those sizes?
The certification does two jobs. It protects your margin because the retailer cannot easily substitute your product with an unmarked alternative. And it gives the store's floor staff a reason to recommend your item over the cheaper generic beside it. The customer who asks "Does this really work?" gets a verifiable answer, and the sale closes without a discount.
Solbari's wholesale entry is the endgame of a longer education cycle the brand did not have to fund alone. The broader market — dermatology conferences, FDA sunscreen reviews, skin-cancer awareness campaigns — built demand for certified daily sun protection. The brand's move is to position product where that demand now concentrates: the specialty store where a customer expects to pay for performance and walks in ready to buy the item that solves the problem.