Swedish hygiene giant Essity acquired 80% of Knix in a deal that closed September 26, 2022, paying roughly $320M USD for that stake at a total valuation near $400-500M. Founder Joanna Griffiths retained the remaining 20%, valued at about $80M at close.

Did Knix's founder leave the company?

Yes. Joanna Griffiths stepped down as president in July 2026 after roughly 14 years leading Knix. Former Chief Commercial Officer Nicole Tapscott was named her successor, tasked with expanding retail and international presence.

Is Knix profitable or growing in 2026?

Unclear from public data. Knix does not disclose standalone financials as an Essity subsidiary. A November 2025 BNN Bloomberg report called combined Canada/US revenue 'nine figures,' but the only ground truth would be Essity's own quarterly segment disclosures, which have not confirmed a specific figure.

Who is Knix's biggest competitor?

Thinx, owned by Kimberly-Clark since a 2022 majority acquisition, is widely cited as Knix's closest direct rival in leakproof period underwear. Thinx settled a 2022 class-action lawsuit over chemical content claims without admitting wrongdoing.

Could AI replace what Knix does?

Not really. Knix's core business is physical apparel design, ultrasonic-bonding fabric manufacturing, and retail distribution (19 stores as of November 2025). AI mainly touches marketing content and customer service, not the patented leakproof garment technology or physical supply chain.

Is Knix losing market share to Victoria's Secret or Lululemon?

Reports as of March 2026 (unverified, vendor-sourced) claim Victoria's Secret is launching a 'VS Forever' leakproof line and Lululemon expanded its 'UnderEase' line in 2026, both potentially pressuring Knix's leakproof category leadership, though neither entry has been independently confirmed as material yet.

Consumer brands · subsidiary of Essity · Canada

Knix

knix.com ↗

Canadian DTC brand selling leakproof underwear and inclusive-sizing apparel, majority owned by Essity.

Losing its protection

Assessed 23 July 2026 · Evidence as of 23 July 2026

The structural protection is eroding.

On the recordSince 23 July 2026 · Checkable from Q4 2026 · Every call on the record Checkpoint: Essity's next quarterly earnings disclosure with Knix segment revenue

The call

Knix built real patents and brand loyalty in leakproof underwear, but its own parent's sibling brand and three deep-pocketed rivals are now chasing the same shelf under a first-time president.

Knix sells underwear designed not to leak, using special stitching technology it patented. The company has real fans and was bought by a large Swedish company called Essity for over 400 million dollars in 2022. But the idea is not hard to copy: Victoria's Secret, Lululemon, and Kimberly-Clark (which owns a direct competitor called Thinx) are all launching their own leakproof lines with their own huge store networks and customer bases. The founder left in mid-2026, so it depends on whether the new leader can grow the brand into more retail stores and other countries faster than the big companies can catch up.

Why

AI pressure: None apparent. AI product design tools speed up copycat leakproof lines at big retailers, but no AI agent directly displaces Knix's core business. Could AI do the core job? Unlikely.

Bigger players: Victoria's Secret, Lululemon, and Kimberly-Clark's Thinx. Victoria's Secret and Lululemon are launching their own leakproof lines in 2026, and Essity's own Modibodi competes for the same shelf space. Could a giant copy it? Yes, easily.

What protects it. 15 patents on ultrasonic-bonding tech and 2 million+ existing customers give Knix a head start that copycats still have to close.

What would change this call

Essity's Q3/Q4 2026 reports show Knix segment revenue declining further. Confirms real, sustained customer loss rather than reporting noise.
Victoria's Secret's VS Forever or Lululemon's UnderEase actually ship nationwide. Shows incumbents are converting distribution scale into real leakproof-category share.
A second Knix leadership change occurs within 12 months of Tapscott's appointment. Signals internal instability compounding external competitive pressure.

Key numbers

Essity paid ~$320M for 80% of Knix (2022-09-26)
Online revenue down 20-50% YoY per Grips (2026-05-25)
Founder Joanna Griffiths exited after 14 years (2026-07-14)

Named risks

Untested new leadership under Nicole Tapscott after founder's July 2026 exit. Severity: high
Conflicting third-party signals of online sales decline versus company claims of nine-figure revenue. Severity: medium
Large incumbents (Victoria's Secret, Lululemon, Kimberly-Clark's Thinx) reportedly entering leakproof category. Severity: medium
Minimal employee equity upside since Essity owns 80% and Knix reports no independent financials. Severity: low

Rivals, as read in July 2026

Rival	Direction	Evidence
Thinx (Kimberly-Clark)	contesting	Settled 2022 PFAS class action; remains closest direct rival in leakproof underwear as of 2024
Modibodi	contesting	Acquired by Essity in same 2022 wave, making it a sibling competitor within Knix's own parent
Victoria's Secret	gaining on	Reportedly launching 'VS Forever' leakproof line, per March 2026 vendor analysis, unverified
Lululemon	gaining on	Reportedly expanded 'UnderEase' moisture-wicking line in 2026, per vendor analysis, unverified

Questions people ask

Who owns Knix now?: Swedish hygiene giant Essity acquired 80% of Knix in a deal that closed September 26, 2022, paying roughly $320M USD for that stake at a total valuation near $400-500M. Founder Joanna Griffiths retained the remaining 20%, valued at about $80M at close.
Did Knix's founder leave the company?: Yes. Joanna Griffiths stepped down as president in July 2026 after roughly 14 years leading Knix. Former Chief Commercial Officer Nicole Tapscott was named her successor, tasked with expanding retail and international presence.
Is Knix profitable or growing in 2026?: Unclear from public data. Knix does not disclose standalone financials as an Essity subsidiary. A November 2025 BNN Bloomberg report called combined Canada/US revenue 'nine figures,' but the only ground truth would be Essity's own quarterly segment disclosures, which have not confirmed a specific figure.
Who is Knix's biggest competitor?: Thinx, owned by Kimberly-Clark since a 2022 majority acquisition, is widely cited as Knix's closest direct rival in leakproof period underwear. Thinx settled a 2022 class-action lawsuit over chemical content claims without admitting wrongdoing.
Could AI replace what Knix does?: Not really. Knix's core business is physical apparel design, ultrasonic-bonding fabric manufacturing, and retail distribution (19 stores as of November 2025). AI mainly touches marketing content and customer service, not the patented leakproof garment technology or physical supply chain.
Is Knix losing market share to Victoria's Secret or Lululemon?: Reports as of March 2026 (unverified, vendor-sourced) claim Victoria's Secret is launching a 'VS Forever' leakproof line and Lululemon expanded its 'UnderEase' line in 2026, both potentially pressuring Knix's leakproof category leadership, though neither entry has been independently confirmed as material yet.

Timeline

2026-07-14Founder Joanna Griffiths steps down as president; CCO Nicole Tapscott named successor
2025-11-13Knix launches men's line MNTD; operates 19 stores, plans 10 more and wholesale entry
2025-07-28Knix reports over 15 million pairs of leakproof underwear sold to date
2023-01-04Knix reports $126M revenue for first nine months of 2022
2022-09-26Essity finalizes 80% acquisition of Knix for about $320M; Knix passes 2M customers
2022-08-31Essity also finalizes acquisition of Modibodi, creating a sibling competitor to Knix
2022-07-12Essity agrees to acquire Knix majority stake in deal valuing company at $400-500M
2021-05-21Knix raises $53M round led by TZP Group, reports $133.6M 2021 revenue

Revision history

23 July 2026

First assessed. Losing its protection. The text above is fixed as of this date and is not edited afterwards.

In the same band

PVH VF Kering