Andrew "Drew" Leander Garner is a Green Beret-turned-designer with a philosophy that equipment must serve without fail, or it becomes the enemy. His career trajectory traces from combat engineering to tactical soft goods design to industrial design leadership, culminating in VAREN—an operator-grade golf equipment company built on the principles of reliability, longevity, and uncompromising performance.
Service Term: 2011–2016
Staff Sergeant (E-5)
MOS 18C: Special Forces Engineer Sergeant
Military occupational specialty: combat engineering, field fortifications, demolitions, rigging, reconnaissance, and tactical sabotage operations
Drew completed the SFAS (Special Forces Assessment and Selection) course—one of the most rigorous military training programs in the world. SFAS tests physical endurance, mental resilience, problem-solving under extreme stress, and leadership in austere conditions. Selection is the gateway to Special Forces qualification.
The course introduced him to the concept that would define his design philosophy: the difference between "good enough" and "will not fail." In a combat engineer role, equipment failure isn't a product defect—it's a casualty event. This mindset became non-negotiable.
Among the most storied SFAS events are the "Jerry can carries"—exercises where candidates transport heavy water containers over demanding terrain under time pressure. These moments test not just physical strength but decision-making under fatigue. Drew's experience with jerry cans and their role in SF operations would later inform his design thinking around weight distribution, durability, and equipment that doesn't become a burden.
North Carolina State University
Focus areas: Anthropometric research, rapid prototyping methodologies, military-specification durability protocols, and human-centered design systems.
Drew's graduate work bridged military engineering principles with industrial design practice—studying how human bodies interact with load-bearing systems, how to prototype for extreme use cases, and how to embed durability benchmarks directly into design processes.
Period: 2016–early 2022 (approximate)
Spiritus Systems is the premium tactical equipment manufacturer founded on the principle that soft goods—pouches, vests, harnesses—must perform under real operational load. Drew designed tactical soft goods with the embedded philosophy that testing is not optional.
Key Learning: 1,000+ hours of testing became the operational standard. He learned to move beyond "pass the test" into "will not fail." This wasn't marketing speak—it was a testing commitment. Every seam, every attachment point, every material choice had to survive edge cases that users would encounter in field conditions.
This period shaped the testing philosophy that would define VAREN's development.
Period: Mid-2022 to ~2023
GORUCK, founded by Jason McCarthy (10th SFG, former CIA), is the premier tactical gear and events company. Drew joined as Head of Industrial Design, leading product development for one of the most respected brands in the space.
Drew led a series of high-profile collaborations with Carryology, the design-focused gear publication:
"Jerry Cans & Special Forces" — Blog post published March 10, 2023, bylined as "Drew Garner – Green Beret, Head of Design." The post explored the role of jerry can logistics in Special Forces operations, connecting equipment design to operational necessity. Published on goruck.eu/blogs/news-stories/jerry-cans-special-forces.
Jason McCarthy, GORUCK CEO, welcomed Drew's perspective as a practicing Green Beret with design leadership background—a rare combination.
Period: 2023–present
Founded after his tenure at GORUCK, Leander Studio emerged as Drew's independent design practice—a laboratory for testing materials, refining manufacturing partnerships, and developing signature products that embody his design philosophy.
Developed a proprietary leather treatment with water-resistant finish, combining traditional tanning with modern hydrophobic coatings. The goal: leather that ages gracefully while resisting environmental degradation.
Custom matte-texture waterproof zippers sourced from specialist suppliers. Every material choice optimized for durability and repair—parts should be replaceable, upgradable, and replaceable again.
The core Leander Studio product line:
Carryology (April 2024): Featured Leander Studio in their regular gear roundup, noting the "Green Beret DNA" embedded in the design philosophy.
Gear Patrol (April 2025): Spotlight on Leander Studio's approach to durability and repairability as core design tenets.
Reddit community and gear enthusiasts consistently noted the "GR DNA"—GORUCK DNA—in Leander Studio products: uncompromising on function, attention to seam construction, material choices informed by field use, and a philosophy that your gear should work harder than you do.
Period: 2024–present
Drew founded Prevail Studio's Pinehurst Innovation Lab to build operator-grade golf equipment—applying military-grade design principles to the sport. VAREN emerged as the brand vehicle: the lifestyle and travel product ecosystem supporting the golf system.
Leander Studio's expertise in durable carry systems, leather work, and everyday gear evolved into VAREN's Passage Realm—travel and lifestyle products:
All currently in sampling with leather sourced from DH (South Korea). Same factories, same design rigor, now integrated into the VAREN ecosystem.
Golf is a pressure environment in disguise. The course doesn't forgive distraction. Equipment must support performance without requiring thought. Micro-friction becomes macro mistakes—a rattle in your bag is mental noise. Design for the extreme case so the normal day feels effortless.
Drew's design thinking process, grounded in systems engineering and military experience, articulated through the "Five Whys" framework—asking "why" five times to reach the core principle.
I lived inside systems where performance isn't optional. I was a Special Forces engineer—I learned to trust or distrust tools with real consequences. When I left the military and entered design, I asked: why should golf equipment be any different? Why should the gear be okay with compromises? VAREN exists because I built it for people who expect their equipment to work the same way I learned to expect mine: without fail.
The course is a pressure environment in disguise. You're alone with your equipment and your mind. Golf punishes the distracted and rewards the disciplined. It's quiet but demanding—no scoreboard, no crowd, just you versus the course. The equipment you carry either supports that clarity or becomes noise. I wanted to build for that silence.
Micro-friction becomes macro mistakes. A rattle in your bag is mental noise. A zipper that catches is distraction. A seam that frays is doubt. When you design for extreme cases, normal days feel effortless. Engineering psychology—remove the friction and the equipment disappears from consciousness. The player can focus on performance.
My career has been turning real use into real objects. Not "new" or "trendy," but earned. I want to build things that you can repair. That you can upgrade. That you can pass forward to someone else. That's the design goal: longevity. BIFL—Buy It For Life. The opposite of disposable.
Standards are easier to keep when shared. A team-shaped worldview. When you're part of a community with values, you're accountable not just to a brand but to each other. VAREN's CODE isn't a marketing slogan—it's a promise. Mark you earn. Promise you keep. That's how you prevail as one.
Drew's language reflects his background and design philosophy. When he uses certain terms, they carry specific meaning:
Not "military science" (which is academic/theoretical), but the practical discipline of combat engineering—demolitions, fortifications, reconnaissance, and equipment reliability under duress.
Military specification benchmarks: durability, failure testing, material consistency. These aren't marketing claims; they're engineering specifications that military equipment must meet to pass procurement.
Authentic use of this term: VAREN designs to actual military standards because Drew's design process incorporates those benchmarks. Not a buzzword—a design practice.
Products undergo extensive field testing in real use conditions before release. This mirrors the Special Forces approach: don't deploy equipment that hasn't been stress-tested in the environment where it will be used.
The worldview of someone trained in Special Forces: reliability is respect, longevity is sustainability, and equipment should work harder than you do.
Andrew Garner's career arc—from Green Beret engineer to design leader to founder—tells a consistent story: equipment that works without fail is not a feature, it's a philosophy. VAREN represents the full expression of that thinking applied to a new domain. For a golfer carrying his equipment onto a course, the brand promise is simple: this will not let you down. That's not marketing. That's a Green Beret's commitment.