This story appears in the February 2026 issue of Utah Business. Subscribe.
Draping runway models in soft blankets is not exactly a traditional approach to selling everyday home goods. Tommy Higham, co-founder and creative director of Lola Blankets, acknowledges that sometimes their campaigns lean edgier than other local brands. It’s a risk the team has always been willing to take.
“It’s not going to land with some people, and that’s why other people aren’t doing it,” Higham says. “We have a higher tolerance for risk with the brand, because it’s coming from a genuine place. We think it’s cool, so we’re going to do it. And if it doesn’t land with some people, we’re okay with that.”
How does a brand know when it’s time to take a risk and when to reconsider? The answer comes down to authenticity.
Behind the blanket boom
Brat summer. OLIPOP vending machines. The untimely death of the Duolingo owl. While sensational marketing tactics are nothing new, it’s no secret that in today’s fast-paced, digital climate, people respond to hype. While the term has previously been reserved for skate brands and limited-edition sneaker drops, one of Utah’s fastest-growing empires, Lola Blankets, is bringing hype branding to a cozier space.
Lola was started in 2021 by Tommy and his brother Will Higham, who leads as co-founder and CEO. Since then, Lola has exploded — at the end of 2025, it was reported that Lola Blankets sold 600,000 blankets in one month, and well over 1 million were sold during the year.
From their glamorous blanket fashion show staged at New York Fashion Week to hand-delivering branded Polaris RZRs to top Utah influencers, Lola has thrown out the traditional home goods marketing playbook. Taking cues from industries like high fashion, beauty and even streetwear, the team has leaned into bold experiences, extreme gifting and head-turning visuals that are impossible to ignore.
Tommy, who has a background in communications and entrepreneurship, drew on his love of photography and experience with social media to build the brand vision. When asked what strategies informed this outside-the-box branding, Tommy says, “From day one, it felt very natural. We aren’t calculated at all. We’re really just creating campaigns and imagery from what we love, and then if it resonates with a big group of people, that’s great.”
While there may not be a calculated strategy, Lola’s branding is no accident. Following its unique internal compass, the Lola team has built a distinct brand identity, tapped into ripe online communities and embraced uncertainty — elevating blankets from a bedroom staple to a must-have luxury item.
Find the right partners
Since the beginning, Lola has generated buzz with its untraditional but attention-grabbing brand partnerships. Last year alone, they released a limited-edition blanket design in collaboration with the pop duo LANY, and were named the official blanket of the New York Yankees. While they are no stranger to big-name partnerships, Tommy Higham says they are “super selective” on who they work with. “We either think that the collaborator fits the brand or enhances a part of the brand that we want to show more of.”
Lola’s recent collaboration with clothing brand Aviator Nation is another in a long line of unexpected partnerships. The bold, lightning-bolt emblazoned blankets may seem like a deviation from the comfort and coziness of Lola’s best-selling designs, but Tommy Higham continues, “[The collaboration] really made Lola feel more ‘Lola,’ because we look up to ... how genuine their brand is. Across the board with our collaborators, we like something that they’re doing in their lives. They have something that we are aspiring to be or that we connect with.”
This ethos extends to individual influencer and creator partnerships, which have also helped Lola carve its place in the competitive blanket industry. Samantha Forrest, head of brand at Lola, says the secret to their influencer marketing success has been partnering with creators who have built an authentic presence and genuinely love the product. Tapping into the trust between major influencers, such as Tezza and Rachel Parcell, and the deep relationships they’ve built with their audience, provides a built-in platform to showcase the product in action.
Building a brand community
Cultivating collaborative relationships also helps to build a sense of community among brand partners. Forrest says, “Something we always try to do as a brand is ... the unexpected. Nobody else out there is giving away custom Polaris RZRs and coming up with the tagline ‘We ride with Lola.’ But it was so impactful and memorable, not only for the influencers that we gifted it to, but for the community as well. We want people to feel part of the community.”
The timing of these partnerships and campaigns is crucial. The New York Fashion Week show lined up with the beginning of the holiday shopping season, and the Polaris RZR giveaway coincided with “Christmas in August,” Lola’s biggest sale of 2025. Forrest says the goal was to generate buzz around their most profitable timeframes, using social media and engagement metrics to keep them on track. But, she clarifies, the guiding star has always been that things feel “right” to the team.
When to push the envelope
Of course, with these ambitious and attention-grabbing campaigns, there is always a chance that it does not resonate with the customer. While other brands may try to replicate Lola’s visuals and tactics, Will Higham says, “from a visual standpoint, it doesn’t fit with them, because it’s not coming from a genuine place.” By rooting brand decision-making in what the team finds genuinely compelling and interesting, the Lola team takes a bolder and edgier approach to generating awareness and engagement.
Of course, aligning that risk with return on investment and positive margins can be a balancing act. Major events and extensive gifting campaigns can add up financially, and the Utah-based home goods market is deeply competitive and commoditized. However, Will Higham says, “we learned really quickly that if we were proud of what we’re doing, and if we like what we’re doing, the numbers always work out at the end of the day. And I think that’s what makes Lola different from other brands.”
Beneath the hype, there is also a human connection at the heart of the Lola brand. Tommy and Will founded the brand in honor of their mother, Amy Higham, who gave each of her children a soft blanket prior to her passing from breast cancer. Since their founding, Lola has actively partnered with several breast cancer charities and regularly donates blankets to patients at the Huntsman Cancer Institute.
Tommy Higham says, “We think the story enhances the brand, and ... drives the way we operate the business, but we want people to appreciate the quality and excellence behind the brand. The product is amazing. It’s inspired by something genuine, and it makes them feel even more connected to the brand after they’ve had their first interaction.”