ers. The company entered receivership in June after expanding rapidly into physical retail, then retreating online. Its collapse left $23.7 million in liabilities, including, significantly, more than $1.7 million owed to 12,927 customers with unfulfilled orders. After an investor group led by Pushas founders Justin Truong and Sandy Li Truong acquired its assets, Cheng now faces the task of rebuilding the business and its reputation.  Asked whether the previous owners had played any role in the relaunch, Cheng declined to elaborate. “I’ve never met them, and honestly, I’ve just been focused on the launch,” she said. Her priority is preserving what made Stax worth saving while changing how it operates. “Stax was built on inclusivity, and that’s something I want to continue to build on,” she said, outlining ambitions extending beyond sizing to different communities. Earning another chance Cheng started on September 28, little more than a month before the November 6 public relaunch. She said the business deliberately stayed quiet until it could confirm support for customers whose previous orders never arrived. “It just didn’t feel right for us to relaunch without having acknowledged the elephant in the room first,” she told Inside Retail. The resulting credit program is intended to signal how the new company will conduct itself. Eligible customers will receive credit equivalent to their unfulfilled purchases, with order details to be confirmed by December 31 and balances spent by June 30, 2027. However, customers who used third party payment providers are excluded. Stax says it cannot see whether those providers have already refunded them and directs them towards dispute processes instead.  Cheng acknowledged that an announcement alone could not repair the relationship. “You can’t build trust overnight,” she said. Her intention is for customers to judge the company over the months ahead, rather than take its sincerity on faith. That shifts the emphasis from the generosity of an opening gesture to the consistency of daily operations, where promises about delivery, service and product quality will either gain substance or fall apart. Growing only as fast as the business can see Her approach draws on experience inside larger businesses and a performance marketing background, including her previous role at Turo. But the metrics occupying her attention extend beyond advertising results. “If you can’t see the cash, you can’t see your inventory, and you can’t reconcile that with what you’re promising customers, it’s really hard to steer a company,” she said. Visibility, in her account, must determine the pace of responsible growth. Fast growth can make scrutiny feel unnecessary precisely when a business needs it most. “Sometimes really fast growth makes blind spots bigger because people tend to ask less questions when companies are growing quickly,” Cheng said. Stax will remain online for now, with physical retail only a possible longer term consideration. The priority is getting the customer experience right before adding complexity, rather than treating expansion as evidence of success. Rebuilding the relationships behind the brand That discipline also extends to suppliers. Cheng said the new owners travelled to meet suppliers after the acquisition, rebuilding relationships with businesses affected by the collapse. Many are now supplying Stax again, helping restore familiar products. She did not say historical supplier debts had been repaid. Instead, her account focused on renewed relationships and a production approach that gives manufacturers the time to deliver quality rather than constantly rushing them. “The most important quality control is really giving the process the time it needs,” Cheng said. She described creative director Georgia Bachmann and lead designer Jacqueline Benson checking seams, trying garments themselves and wearing them to the gym. Both have returned from the previous business, alongside some customer support employees. Their involvement preserves product knowledge and customer insight, even as Cheng said the team surrounding them is now mostly new. Bachmann’s progression from customer service through fit modelling and product leadership makes her promotion particularly meaningful to Cheng. She understands both the appeal of Stax’s products and the frustrations customers experienced. “For me as a leader, it’s really important to elevate the people around me,” Cheng said. Giving Bachmann greater creative authority reflects that philosophy, placing responsibility with someone whose understanding of the brand reaches beyond its campaign imagery. Bigger than the people running it Cheng’s belief that Stax should be bigger than its founders also applies to her own position. “The messaging of inclusivity is so much more important than who’s running the business,” she said. She wants customers’ attachment to rest on the brand’s values and their participation in its community. Success in her view means customers would still love Stax and understand what it stood for even if she were absent.  The first expression of that direction is Girls Gone Wild, an outdoor inspired collection developed under Bachmann’s creative leadership. Familiar products will return, while newly produced pieces carry a slightly altered logo. Yet Cheng sees the launch as one moment, not the strategy itself. “A smaller group of loyal customers to me is more valuable than a large group who never come back,” she said. The real turnaround begins afterwards.