Consumers who want to buy American-made workout clothing have very few options. The new brand Vast Terrain is trying to change that.
A lot of consumers want to support domestic brands when it’s an option. And in many industries (like knifemaking), there are lots of good selections of USA-made and even local products.
But tech apparel is a little trickier to find, especially if you want domestic fabrics and materials, too! Enter Tampa-based Vast Terrain, a brand that gives a new, solid choice for American-made sports apparel.
Vast Terrain: American-Made Athletic Apparel Review
Slipping on the polyester-spandex-blend Elevate Technical Tee by Vast Terrain, I let out a little, “Oh, this is nice.” The fabric feels just a little heavier than a lot of tech tees, but not too heavy for running. It’s soft against the skin and stretchy. It feels like it could come from any of several well-known apparel brands. But on the tag site are three rarely seen letters for this type of garment: U-S-A.
Time to get running — out the door I went (on several occasions over the last month).
Purposefully varying my running distance through Denver’s ever-changing spring weather, I put a lot of miles on two Vast Terrain shirts: the Elevate Technical Tee ($50) and the Ascent Long Sleeve Top ($68). I also ran in the brand’s Endurance 7” Short ($65). Plus, I used them in the gym while working on some standard after-work Olympic lifting routines.
All three products have proven excellent over several workouts and at least a couple of washes. And while it’s still early in my running season, I expect to grab these three products regularly for many outings.
It’s worth noting that they each seem well-suited to all kinds of sports. They have the details of good products, like bonded hems and flatlock stitching for chafe resistance and comfort. The poly-spandex blend also has embedded silver salts to fight odor.
And overall, they all work well. These are solid tech tees and shorts at a competitive price. But where the brand stands out is its sourcing and manufacturing — it all begins and ends in the USA.
‘Transparent Manufacturing’
Vast Terrain uses a tool, found on quite a few small direct-to-consumer brand websites, it calls “transparent manufacturing.” What that means is the brand points out the exact cost of each stage of design, materials, production, and shipping.
The brand’s products are certainly not cheap but do compete well with quality apparel from big brands. And given the USA manufacturing (and likely bumps in pricing on foreign goods due to recent tariff hikes), the brand should compete well.
Its factories are all based in the U.S. It makes yarn in Greensboro, N.C.; wovens in Roanoke, Va.; knits and zippers in Los Angeles; trims in Pawtucket, R.I.; and cut and sew in San Francisco.
Vast Terrain manufactures both women’s and men’s apparel. My wife did several runs in the brand’s leggings and was very pleased. She noted they stack up well with quality products from other brands.
So if you’re in the market for a pair of running shorts or a new tech tee, give this newcomer a look. Its products are spot on, and its production happens, as the name alludes, right here in the vast terrain of the USA.
