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Maintaining a strong identity is key to building a brand that lasts. It creates a sense of immersion into that brand’s universe and its unique vision, while also fostering brand recognition. A label from our community that stands out for its well-maintained identity is the American brand minnow. Centered around cool coastal vibes, this brand has been able to expand from swimwear into clothing, sleepwear, and accessories for the whole family while upholding their aesthetics.

As minnow celebrates its 10th anniversary, we wanted to take a walk down memory lane with its founder and CEO, Morgan Smith. Join us as we learn more about how this iconic brand started, how it has upheld its values and aesthetics over a decade, why they’re part of the Playtime community, and where its headed over the next 10 years.

Morgan, Founder and CEO of minnow

Following a career in premium product marketing in New York and Los Angeles, Morgan had a new spark of inspiration when she returned to her hometown of Laguna Beach, California. As her family prepared for a trip to Europe, she was in search of a boardie for her son that felt classic. When she couldn’t find one, Morgan decided to launch her own brand. She started with the goal of creating elevated children’s swimwear inspired by the timeless style of coastal living. For the brand’s name, she drew inspiration from childhood memories spent near the water. To her, the name minnow captures the wonder, freedom, and curiosity of growing up by the sea.

The brand is now based in Charleston, South Carolina where its small, but mighty, team works across design, creative, production, marketing, wholesale, and retail. While every team member has their specific focus, collaboration plays a big role in their culture. Their talented team is passionate and dedicated to creating premium products that inspire meaningful family experiences.

When creating new collections, Morgan and her team are constantly collecting inspiration. They look to everything from travel to architecture, vintage textiles, photography, or even to everyday moments. Something that makes their design process unique is that the campaign location often inspires the collection itself. Last summer, Morgan and the brand’s Head of Design took an inspiration trip to Paris. This played a meaningful role in shaping minnow’s Spring 2026 collection, which was later captured on local families on St. Barths.

The design team typically begins with a moodboard, color palette, and a destination in mind. From there, they develop prints, silhouettes, and product ideas before refining everything into a cohesive collection. All of their categories are designed together. They think about the family as a whole and how each piece works independently while still feeling connected to the larger story.

Over the years, minnow has grown into a family lifestyle brand offering swimwear, clothing, sleepwear, and accessories for babies, children, and adults to meet the growing needs of their customers. These expansions have all happened organically as families began wanting coordinating options and a place where they could shop for everyone at once. This is one of the most exciting parts of the business for Morgan today, seeing multiple generations wearing minnow together.

These natural evolutions have also been driven by Morgan’s own needs as a parent. Through minnow, she wants to create a complete destination for families preparing for a trip. Whether that means, swimwear, pajamas, clothing, or travel accessories, she wants to offer it. When the brand launched its first sleepwear collection four years ago, it sold out almost immediately. This reinforced that their customers were looking for more than swim. Today, minnow can take families from sleep to swim to dinner, all while maintaining the same aesthetic and quality standards that have defined the brand since the beginning.

Morgan has found the biggest challenge as the brand has grown has been knowing what not to make. The goal has never been to do more for the sake of doing more. It’s always been about creating products that genuinely fit into their customers’ lives.

The minnow team works hard to edit every collection and focus on pieces that feel timeless, rather than trend-driven. Across all categories, they ensure everything ties back to their core point of view around resortwear and family life. Minnow’s collections are easily recognized by their sun-washed color palettes, thoughtful details, and a timeless approach to design.

Morgan and her team have worked hard to find the right production partners that share minnow’s commitment to quality, craftsmanship, and design. Different products are made in different regions based on the expertise available there. For example, their embroidery partners in India create some of the most beautiful hand-finished details in their collections. Morgan visited one of their factories there this spring, and was thrilled to witness the artistry and care that goes into each piece first-hand. She’s proud of the relationships they’ve built and the talented teams that help bring minnow collections to life.

To make some of the brand’s most-loved pieces feel even more personal, they began offering a monogramming service a few years ago. Whether on a Getaway Bag, a lunchbox, or a French terry polo, adding a monogram transforms pieces into something unique and personal. Many of these items are purchased for vacations, milestones, and as gifts, which is why this service felt like a natural extension of minnow. Offering this does add some complexity from an operational standpoint, but Morgan has invested in creating a dedicated Monogram Shop that has made the experience seamless for their customers.

Monogrammed minnow products

Another service integrated into minnow’s site is the minnow Archive. They saw there was a passionate resale community organically emerging, so they launched minnow Archive to support circular fashion and extend the life of their products. This decision was also driven by the demand of customers in search of sold-out favorites among minnow’s limited edition prints. Their elevated platform for customers to buy and sell pre-loved minnow pieces is a great way to keep beloved products in circulation while helping customers discover styles they may have missed the first time around.

minnow Archive

Minnow is a brand that never hesitates to work with others aligned with their vision. They have their own affiliate program that allows them to partner with people who genuinely love and wear minnow. Morgan finds that the most meaningful recommendations come from authentic experiences, which is why it was important to her to incorporate this program that gives creators, customers, and brand advocates the opportunity to share minnow while earning a commission. It’s also been a valuable way for them to introduce the brand to new families through trusted voices in the minnow community.

They have also teamed up with other brands over the years. Some of Morgan’s favorites were partnerships with J.Crew, Liberty Fabrics, and activations with several Auberge Resorts properties around the world. Collaborations like these are another way to introduce minnow to new audiences and learn from other creative teams. At their best, they feel authentic and rooted in shared values.

While each collaboration has been unique, they’ve all been centered around bringing people together and creating memorable family experiences.

In the fall of 2023, minnow opened its own Charleston flagship store. This marked a special milestone for the brand, as Charleston had become the home for both Morgan’s family and minnow. They wanted to create a space where customers could fully experience the minnow universe. The store allows families to touch the fabrics, try on pieces, and connect in person.

Minnow’s store reflects the brand’s spirit – it’s coastal, airy, and welcoming. It has quickly become a gathering place for both locals and visitors. The store also offers a selection of products from other brands that share minnow’s values and aesthetics. Morgan and her team love being part of the King Street community, and creating this space where customers can discover new favorites alongside minnow collections.

Playtime has played an important role in minnow’s growth as a brand. For Morgan, it’s one of the few places where the children’s industry can come together in person to discover new collections, exchange ideas, and build lasting relationships. She and her team have always appreciated the sense of creativity and community. It’s an event they look forward to each season, and one that continues to play a meaningful role in their business.

Morgan can hardly believe minnow is celebrating 10 years. While the brand has grown tremendously, its heart has remained remarkably consistent. They have expanded categories, grown their team, opened their store, and built a global customer base, but the mission has never changed. Morgan still firmly believes in creating timeless products that inspire meaningful family experiences.

They’ve expanded their size ranges to better meet their customers’ needs, as well as the needs of Morgan’s own children as they’ve grown. Her son was one of their very first fit models, wearing tiny swim briefs when the brand launched. Today, he’s wearing a size 13/14 boardie. Watching that journey unfold alongside minnow’s customers has been fun for Morgan.

As she looks ahead, Morgan wants to continue growing thoughtfully while staying true to minnow’s values. She’s excited for new collections, capsule collaborations, and pop up experiences. One of Morgan’s favorite parts of the business is meeting the minnow community in person. She’s particularly excited to bring minnow to a few new destinations. Above all, minnow is dedicated to continuing to create memorable experiences for families both online and off.

Morgan and her children in minnow’s early days

Thank you to Morgan and the minnow team for sharing this behind-the-scenes look at a decade of this coastal cool brand! It’s amazing to see how they’ve upheld the label’s distinct identity while expanding into new categories and age ranges.

Get your pass to discover minnow’s new Spring/Summer 2027 collection at Playtime New York July 26-28!

If you’re interested in learning the stories behind other brands, check out more brand success stories here.

All images courtesy of minnow