Our Mission
That is the test we apply to every product, every material, every claim. And it is the test we apply to every commitment we make about this business. What follows is what Sundial stands for right now - and what we are honestly still building toward.
What We Stand For
Every product we make takes something from the planet - fabric, dye, energy, freight. We do not pretend otherwise. The work, then, is to take less and give back more - and to be specific about where we are on that work.
Pre-revenue and early-revenue businesses often make environmental claims they cannot sustain. We would rather under-promise. Below are the commitments that are real and documentable today, and the ones we are working toward for when the business can honor them.
Current Commitments
At least 50% across the line.
Every piece in the Traverse series uses recycled fabric for the outer and lining. Recycled silpoly ripstop on the Shell. Recycled polyester microfleece on the Fleece. Recycled polyester ripstop on the Puffy outer and lining.
What is not recycled: the Puffy's synthetic fill. The recycled fills we have tested have not held loft to our standard, particularly when wet. When one does, we switch. Until then, we will not claim it.
No warehouse. No waste.
Every Sundial piece is sewn in our Louisville, Colorado studio after you order it. Lead time is 1–2 weeks. In exchange, there is no warehouse of unsold inventory at the end of a season, no rushed markdowns, and no gear that gets made just to hit a number.
If we cannot sustain made-to-order as the brand grows, we will say so. For now, it is how every piece is built.
No overseas factories.
Sundial gear is designed in Colorado and sewn in Colorado. Not contract-manufactured abroad. Not finished overseas and relabeled. The same hands that draw the pattern sew the seams. Small-batch production catches issues that scale manufacturing misses, and it means we can iterate when trail testing reveals something that needs to change.
Founded and run by a thru-hiker.
Sundial is founder-owned by Andrea, an Appalachian Trail thru-hiker who started cutting fabric after a 2022 hailstorm on the Colorado Trail left her dog Kiefer with no gear worth carrying. The brand is built by and for people who take dogs into real conditions.
When Sundial reaches a revenue level where these commitments are business expenses - not personal ones - we will formalize them publicly. Until then, the intent is on the record; the claim is not.
1% for the Planet. We are inspired by Patagonia. We will join when 1% of revenue comes from the company, not the founder's bank account.
Trail advocacy giving. The Colorado Trail Foundation, CDTC, and American Hiking Society are the organizations that protect the terrain Sundial gear is built for. Direct support, published annually, starts when the business can sustain it.
Close the Loop upcycling. Your retired technical outerwear becomes the next generation of Sundial dog layers. We are prototyping this program now and will open it when the process is ready to honor every submission.
Wilderness stewardship content. Free guides on Leave No Trace with dogs, off-leash etiquette, and backcountry training with a working dog. We will publish these as we finalize them.
Adventure On.
