As a young sales professional driving across Montana, Michelle Huie would come home exhausted and with achy legs from a day of sitting in her car. A physical therapist friend offered a simple suggestion: wear compression socks. That offhand comment launched a business in 2013.
“It’s really interesting how one person’s passing comment can completely change another person’s life,” said Huie, founder of VIM & VIGR, a Missoula, Montana-based maker of stylish compression leg wear. “It set me on this path to wanting to create really high quality and stylish compression leg wear.”
Michelle spent nearly a year developing VIM & VIGR’s first compression socks before ever selling a single pair. Working closely with a manufacturing partner in Taiwan, a relationship that has lasted the entire 12-year life of the company, she went through iteration after iteration to get the product right.
Every pair is made on a medical knitting machine in a circular knit process that takes approximately seven to eight minutes per sock. Each compression level — 15–20 mmHg for everyday wear, 20–30 mmHg for moderate compression, and 30–40 mmHg medical grade — is tested to ensure it falls within the specified range. Products that don’t meet standards simply aren’t sold.
“You can be passionate, but don’t be precious,” Michelle said. This commitment to clear-eyed judgment over emotional attachment has guided her through development and continues to define how VIM & VIGR operates today.
Huie launched VIM & VIGR in the Amazon store in 2014, drawn by Amazon’s high-intent customer base. People searching for compression socks aren’t necessarily browsing but looking for a solution to a real problem. Huie wanted VIM & VIGR to be their solution with their fashion-forward compression socks that are registered with U.S. Food and Drug Administration as medical devices based on their pressure throughout the sock.
“When we launched on Amazon, sales took off immediately,” Huie recalled. “I could share my story directly on the listing, which really resonated with customers searching for compression socks.”
Huie uses her Amazon Brand Store to display her full line of fun product designs, including socks, leg sleeves, and tights, and to help customers understand the difference between 15–20 mmHg everyday wear and 30–40 mmHg medical-grade compression. Huie wants customers to also see fabric options like cotton, merino wool, moisture-wicking nylon, and understand why design matters for a product they’ll wear every day.
VIM & VIGR uses Amazon’s A+ Content program to transform standard product listings into immersive brand experiences. Rich imagery, comparison charts, and detailed product descriptions help shoppers understand what they’re buying, and how VIM & VIGR’s approach is different from other compression socks.
“Our product is such a visual product,” Huie explained. “The designs, the branding are such differentiators compared to what people think of when they think of compression socks. It was really important for us to utilize all those tools that allowed us to create that level of content.”
Videos included in their product listings have also become another key asset. Customers want to see the product in motion, including how it fits, how it looks with an outfit, how it moves. VIM & VIGR uses video to bring the product to life in ways static images can’t.
Huie also knew she had to find those customers searching for compression socks in Amazon’s store, so she uses Amazon Ads to maintain visibility. Sponsored campaigns help surface the brand to shoppers who are actively searching and keep VIM & VIGR top of mind in a crowded field.
“We’ve been investing a lot in Amazon campaigns and Amazon Ads,” Huie said. “It’s a big driver, and we’re constantly working on optimizing that experience.”
Today, Amazon represents approximately 14 percent of VIM & VIGR’s overall business, and the company ships tens of thousands of socks per month through Fulfillment by Amazon (FBA), which handles storage, picking, packing, fulfillment, and customer service for sellers’ orders.
But for Huie, building a business in Missoula has always meant more than selling socks. VIM & VIGR employs approximately 12 people, who are primarily from the Missoula area, and has been recognized as one of Inc. Magazine’s Best Places to Work two years in a row, Huie said.
But the company’s most personal investment is the VIM & VIGR Nursing Scholarship Fund. Huie launched it during COVID as a way to give back to healthcare workers and caregivers. This past year, VIM & VIGR partnered with the Providence Foundation of Montana, which matched funds raised, to award $30,000 in scholarships to 11 recipients pursuing healthcare careers. It’s a program that reflects both Huie’s background in the healthcare industry and the deep connection VIM & VIGR has always had to the nurses, caregivers, and medical professionals who wear the brand’s products.
“I think the tools that Amazon has provided and improved over the past couple of years have allowed us to grow,” she said. “That’s a big contributor to the growth that we’ve seen.”