Foreign Rider Co. manufactures sportswear designed for comfort, daily performance, and simple living. We make products that are built to last, timeless in design, and made using both natural and technical fibres. The company was founded to ensure premium quality, sustainability, and ethical business practices.
A DIFFERENT APPROACH TO SPORTSWEAR
Foreign Rider is a premium sportswear company built around one main idea: What does fr.eedom mean to you?
Founded in 2009 by technical apparel pioneer Ralph Dunning, the company was created to build products that reflect purpose, responsibility, and the pursuit of a more considered life. Designed for comfort, performance, and travel, each piece is made with intention - prioritizing thoughtful design, responsible sourcing, and long-term durability.
After decades of leading innovation in performance apparel, Dunning started Foreign Rider to push back against an industry he saw heading in the wrong direction - one where speed and cutting corners had replaced intention and integrity. Foreign Rider exists to offer an alternative. The company’s work centers around the idea of fr.eedom - personal, physical, creative - and the belief that what we wear can support the pursuit of it.
ABOUT RALPH DUNNING
Ralph Dunning has spent over three decades shaping technical sportswear at the highest level.
His career began in 1991 at BMG Music before launching his first performance apparel brand, Rip N Hammer, in 1993. In 2001, Ralph revolutionized golf with Dunning Golf - the first brand to offer player-specific apparel made from technical fabrics. After Zach Johnson’s 2007 Masters win in Dunning, the brand became a staple at top courses worldwide.
Early in his career, he pioneered the use of advanced fabric technology in golf apparel, effectively revolutionizing how the sport dresses. As the first person to bring performance materials into golf, Dunning launched the industry’s very first all-technical golf clothing line in 2001.
Ralph’s experience spans from local manufacturing in Toronto to global production. He’s learned the value of fit, engineering, and premium materials at every scale.
In 2009, after cycling through the Giro d’Italia and racing Ironman Kona, Ralph envisioned a wardrobe made for recovery, movement, and minimalism. That vision became Foreign Rider Co. in 2020 - a brand built for a life in motion.
Ralph’s background in motorcycle and cycling culture continues to shape the brand’s spirit of exploration of fr.eedom.
“We aren’t chasing trends or trying to be louder than the next company. We’re here to make better product, communicate stories about real people and ask the right questions.” - Ralph Dunning
BUILT FOR THE LIFE OF AN ATHLETE
Whether you’re pushing on the trail, recovering off the bike, or navigating daily life, each piece is engineered with the demands of athletic living in mind. Foreign Rider was born from founder Ralph Dunning’s own post-ride rituals - where comfort, recovery, and mobility mattered just as much as performance. After decades immersed in cycling and global travel, Ralph saw the need for gear that could carry him seamlessly from training to travel, from movement to downtime, without compromising on function or feel. The result is a system of versatile essentials - designed to perform when needed, offer comfort when you slow down, and elevate the everyday, whether dressed up or worn casual.
Ralph’s background in motorcycle and cycling culture continues to shape the brand’s spirit of exploration of fr.eedom. Our ethos is rooted in a culture of motion - one that ties into moto, surf, cycling, trail running, and anything else that embodies the exploration of fr.eedom. These are the environments that we are a part of, and the people who live them are the reason we build.
