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Wayne Borromeo
President & Cofounder @ Wondery Outdoors
Wayne Borromeo is an experienced entrepreneur and business leader currently serving as the President, CMO, and Co-Founder of Wondery Outdoors, a BIPOC-owned and women-led outdoor goods company.12
Professional Background
Wayne's career journey includes:
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Wondery: He co-founded the company in June 2016 and initially served as Founder & CEO until January 2021. Since then, he has taken on the role of President, CMO, and Co-Founder.1
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Previous Experience: Before Wondery, Wayne worked as an Outdoor Guide at CSUN Associated Students, a Creative Producer at AwesomenessTV, and a Production Assistant at Paramount Pictures.1
Education
Wayne holds a Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration and Management from California State University-Northridge, which he completed between 2013 and 2016 with a GPA of 3.6.1
Company Focus
Wondery Outdoors specializes in versatile, comfortable, and size-inclusive apparel for women, with a particular emphasis on empowering historically marginalized communities to explore the outdoors.2 The company recently underwent a rebranding effort, which Wayne proudly announced on his LinkedIn profile.3
Entrepreneurial Vision
Wayne Borromeo's entrepreneurial efforts are focused on bridging the "nature gap" for BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) individuals. Wondery's outdoor apparel brand is dedicated exclusively to women, especially women of color, aiming to make outdoor activities more inclusive and accessible.4
Wayne is based in Los Angeles, California, and has demonstrated expertise in marketing, branding, advertising, entrepreneurship, and event management throughout his career.
Highlights
A struggling economy is difficult. Q4 of 2023 was looking amazing for most companies, and overall trajectory was positive! But with inflation and the cost of living going up (it's almost $20 to eat at McDonalds now - why?), tech, entertainment, and retail are having to make big shifts. Between having to drastically cut advertising budget, to offering discounts, to having to pay out of my own pocket to keep employees onboard, to layoffs, to reducing overall newness, to removing our office, to drastically reducing our community events to empower women and other underrepresented communities (an integral part of our brand), it's a huge challenge. Freelancing for positions and putting people on part-time seems to be the norm. Even the large brands are feeling it, making even drastically bigger changes
But we'll make it. These are challenges, not roadblocks. Adapt and overcome. Good luck to all companies (especially small ones in tech, entertainment, and retail!) in the latter half of 2024!
Wondery Outdoors was given the NPCA Defender Award this year and I couldn't be more proud. Together with NPCA, we've donated over $200k to supporting our Parks! Thanks NPCA team!
