Welcome to TANWA 探屲 — an outdoor brand born from real adventures!
Tanwa Outdoor is a UK-based team of hikers, campers, and scramblers who’ve spent years exploring wild places across Britain and beyond. Our story began in 2023 from a simple message: “Anyone up for Snowdonia?” That one trip brought together our co-founders — and we’ve been chasing mountains, ridgelines, and campfires together ever since.
Along the way, we realised something powerful: outdoor adventure changes people. The stress fades with every step uphill, and under a sky full of stars, you feel lighter — in body and mind. That’s why Tanwa is more than a store. We organise outdoor events and test trips to bring like-minded explorers together, share skills, and experience nature as a community.
We also curate and sell high-quality, ultralight outdoor gear from top-tier Chinese brands — selected for durability, performance, and reliability in UK conditions. Our name, 探屲 (Tanwa), means to explore the space among mountains — a reminder that the best journeys aren’t just about the summit, but everything you discover along the way.
Who are we？
Here are the co-founders of Tanwa Outdoor — adventurers, testers, and the team behind every journey.
Guanpeng Lyu (Morton) - Director of Operations
Morton moved to the UK in 2011 from Qingdao, a coastal city in China. He studied at the University of Cambridge and later began his career in London as a project analyst. In 2023, he started getting seriously involved in outdoor adventures and has since completed a wide range of hiking and trekking routes in the UK and abroad, including the West Highland Way, Tour du Mont Blanc, and Iceland’s Laugavegur Trail.
Today, Morton leads Tanwa Outdoor’s product strategy and outdoor operations. He oversees product selection, field testing, and performance evaluation, while managing the full e-commerce journey — from product listings and merchandising to customer experience. He also plans and runs Tanwa’s outdoor events, focusing on route design, safety preparation, and building partnerships within the UK outdoor community.
Fei Jin (Fei) - Buyer & Director of Supply Chain
Fei has lived abroad for over a decade, including seven years in the United States and four years in the United Kingdom. A passionate outdoor enthusiast, she spends her time exploring the world through activities such as campervan travel, sailing, and long-distance backpacking. She has already completed roughly half of the world’s ten most iconic long-distance trekking routes, along with many other classic trails across different continents. As one of the co-founders of Tanwa Outdoor in London, Fei brings both global perspective and deep outdoor experience to the company.
At Tanwa Outdoor, Fei leads supply chain management and manufacturer partnerships. She works closely with leading outdoor gear producers in China, overseeing product development coordination, quality control, and production timelines. Her role includes sourcing advanced materials such as Dyneema® Composite Fabric (DCF), IXPP, and other high-performance technical fabrics, negotiating manufacturing partnerships, and managing logistics from factory to warehouse. Through her work, Fei ensures that Tanwa delivers reliable, innovative, and lightweight outdoor gear that meets the demands of real adventures.
Zixin Luo (Tia) – Commercial Director
Tia moved to the UK in 2007 from Guangdong, China. After graduating from the University of Nottingham in 2018, she began her career as a paediatric dietitian in the NHS. Fluent in English, Cantonese and Mandarin, she has a strong understanding of both the UK and Chinese markets. A passionate outdoor enthusiast, Tia spends most weekends hiking, backpacking, trail running, climbing or cycling.
Today, Tia leads Tanwa Outdoor’s commercial development. She helps innovative Chinese outdoor brands enter and grow within the UK market by connecting them with outdoor exhibitions and trail-running events, developing partnerships with UK retailers, and managing Tanwa’s social media presence. She focuses on building meaningful relationships between brands, retailers and the wider UK outdoor community.