RTIC

What RTIC does

RTIC Outdoors LLC is a privately held Houston, Texas-based outdoor recreation brand founded in 2015 that designs and sells insulated coolers, drinkware, bags, outdoor gear, and apparel. The company's core technology centers on insulation for temperature retention across hard-sided coolers (including the 52 QT Ultra-Light Wheeled Cooler), soft-sided coolers (backpack and pack styles), and a drinkware line of tumblers, mugs, and water bottles. Product extensions include totes, duffles, folding chairs, and branded apparel. Two personalization services — MyRTIC for individual consumers and Custom Shop for business bulk orders with custom logos — enable product customization.

RTIC operates a multi-channel go-to-market model anchored by direct-to-consumer e-commerce at rticoutdoors.com and two company-owned retail locations (a flagship store in Houston and a Tanger Outlets store in Texas City). Distribution is scaled through over 6,200 authorized retail locations nationwide across outdoor, sporting goods, and mass merchant channels. Revenue is generated through one-time hardware sales at unit pricing with seasonal promotional discounting (up to 40% off during events like the 4th of July Sale) and bundle offers. Customer segments span outdoor recreation enthusiasts (primary), hunters, fishermen, travelers, tailgaters, winter sports participants, and fitness users. The company employs 11-50 people and is led by CEO Bill Pond alongside co-founders Jim and John Jacobsen.

Name

RTIC

Legal name

RTIC Outdoors LLC

Website

https://www.rticcoolers.com/

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

RTIC Outdoors LLC is a Houston-based outdoor recreation brand selling insulated coolers, drinkware, bags, gear, and apparel through DTC e-commerce, two flagship stores, and 6,200+ authorized retail locations across the US.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Outdoor Coolers and Insulated Drinkware

NAICS

Sporting Goods Retailers (45911), Sporting Goods, Hobby, Musical Instrument, Book, and Miscellaneous Retailers (459)

akta.pro primary industry

Outdoor Cooking, Hydration & Food Storage Retail (CRAMAAAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Outdoor & Adventure Multi-Category Retail (CRAMABAB), Sporting Goods & Outdoor Inventory-led Online Retailers (CRAFADAJ)

Keywords

• Outdoor coolers
• Insulated drinkware
• Soft-sided coolers
• Outdoor recreation gear
• Cooler accessories

Headquarters

HQ city

Houston

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Others

Revenue model

1. Direct Product Sales - E-commerce: RTIC generates revenue through direct-to-consumer online sales via their website, selling coolers, drinkware, bags, gear, and apparel at listed prices with seasonal promotions and discounts.
2. Retail Distribution: RTIC distributes through 6,200+ authorized retail locations nationwide, generating revenue through wholesale relationships with outdoor retailers.
3. Custom/Personalized Products: RTIC offers a Custom Shop for personalized and branded merchandise, allowing customers to order customized coolers and drinkware products.
4. Physical Retail Store Sales: Revenue from flagship store and Tanger Outlets retail locations in Houston and Texas City, Texas.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

RTIC designs, sources, and sells insulated outdoor products, with its primary line being hard-sided and soft-sided coolers, complemented by insulated drinkware (tumblers, mugs, water bottles), bags (backpack coolers, totes, duffles), outdoor gear (folding chairs), and branded apparel. The company sells through its own e-commerce site, two company-owned retail stores in Texas, and a network of more than 6,200 authorized retailers across the United States, and also offers a Custom Shop for personalized and branded merchandise.

Product overview

RTIC is an outdoor recreation lifestyle brand offering a focused portfolio of insulated coolers, drinkware, and outdoor gear. The product line centers on Hard Coolers and Soft Coolers as the core offerings, supplemented by Insulated Drinkware (tumblers, mugs, water bottles), Bags (backpack coolers, totes, duffles), Outdoor Gear (folding chairs), and Apparel. RTIC provides two personalization services: MyRTIC for individual consumer customization of products, and Custom Shop for business bulk orders with custom branding. The company sells through a direct-to-consumer e-commerce platform alongside over 6,200 retail locations nationwide and operates two flagship stores in Texas.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Hard Coolers

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• TalkableminorGTM or Marketing PartnerTalkable is an affiliate marketing platform integrated into the RTIC website to enable referral marketing and affiliate programs for customer acquisition.
• Tanger OutletscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorRTIC operates a branded retail store location at Tanger Outlets in Texas City, TX. This is a flagship retail partnership providing high-traffic retail presence.
• ADP (Workforce Solutions)minorOthersRTIC uses ADP for workforce management and recruitment, as evidenced by their careers page linking to ADP Workforce Now for job applications.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• YETI Holdings: YETI is the publicly-traded premium cooler and drinkware leader and RTIC's most direct competitor. Both companies target outdoor enthusiasts with rotomolded hard coolers, soft coolers, and insulated drinkware; RTIC explicitly positions as the high-performance, lower-priced alternative.
• Stanley (PMI Worldwide): Stanley is a heritage drinkware brand whose insulated tumblers, mugs, and water bottles directly compete with RTIC's drinkware line. Both target the same consumer use cases (commute, gym, outdoor) and similar price points, making Stanley one of RTIC's closest head-to-head rivals in drinkware.
• Hydro Flask (Helen of Troy): Hydro Flask pioneered the premium insulated water bottle category and competes with RTIC's tumblers, mugs, and water bottles. The two brands share direct-to-consumer, retail, and lifestyle marketing approaches targeting active outdoor and fitness consumers.
• Pelican Products: Pelican's Elite Coolers line competes directly with RTIC's hard-sided coolers in the heavy-duty, premium-insulation segment. Pelican's roots in protective cases inform its rugged cooler engineering, paralleling RTIC's positioning on durability and ice retention.
• Orca Coolers: Orca is a Tennessee-based rotomolded cooler and drinkware brand competing head-to-head with RTIC's hard coolers and tumblers. Both brands emphasize American manufacturing, vibrant color options, and outdoor lifestyle positioning toward similar hunting, fishing, and tailgating consumers.

Broad incumbents

• Igloo Products: Igloo is a legacy mass-market cooler and drinkware brand with broad retail distribution. It overlaps RTIC's hard cooler, soft cooler, and jug categories but targets lower price points and broader use cases (work, school, picnic) versus RTIC's outdoor enthusiast focus.
• The Coleman Company: Coleman is an established outdoor lifestyle brand with broad product breadth across coolers, tents, stoves, and outdoor gear. Coleman and RTIC overlap most directly in coolers and outdoor gear, though Coleman operates as a multi-category incumbent where RTIC remains specialized.
• Thermos L.L.C. Thermos is a long-established insulated drinkware and food storage brand with broad retail distribution. Its tumblers, mugs, and food jars overlap RTIC's drinkware and cooler-adjacent product lines, and it serves as another mass-market incumbent in RTIC's core categories.

Emerging players

• Ozark Trail (Walmart private label): Ozark Trail is Walmart's house-brand outdoor and cooler line that competes on price at the largest U.S. retailer. It exerts structural margin pressure on RTIC's value-tier positioning by offering functional coolers and drinkware at meaningfully lower price points with built-in shelf advantage.
• CamelBak: CamelBak is a leading hydration specialist in backpacks, reservoirs, and insulated bottles. It overlaps RTIC's portable hydration and backpack cooler categories (Lightweight Backpack Cooler) and shares the outdoor recreation and fitness customer base.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/rticcoolers
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCggsMTW0ISwlhCR4me-iSfA
• Facebookfacebook.com/rticoutdoors
• Instagraminstagram.com/rticoutdoors
• Pinterestpinterest.com/rticcoolers
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/rtic-coolers

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about RTIC