I’m writing today with hard news. Despite the extraordinary journey over the last few years and all that we have accomplished together, Both& is shutting down as a business.
I want to be clear that we have arrived at this decision not because we want to stop building the business or because we have lost our commitment to creating a space of joy and empowerment for the community. We are shutting down because we do not have the money to continue, and because the investment world–despite our herculean efforts–has come up with reason after reason to say no to us.
When I started Both&, I was living in my parent’s basement, recovering from top surgery. I had $5,000 in savings, and no background or contacts in fashion or business. All I had was my own experience, and my belief that there were others like me–people who wanted something as simple and profoundly affirming as a t shirt that actually fit. Never in my wildest dreams did I think my humble desire for a t shirt would morph into the beautiful, global community that Both& is today.
I hope you trust me when I say I have poured everything I have into this business, and that I am so grateful and honored to have worked with all of you on this journey.
Over the coming days, we will begin to sell off our remaining inventory in a closing sale. Details of how this will work are available through our FAQs.
For now, I want to thank you all for everything you’ve done to get us to this point, and to ask for your continued support in this difficult next phase. This is not the outcome any of us wanted, but I know that what we have created here together has touched thousands of lives, and has served as a model for what our community deserves. It is my sincere hope that the torch will be passed on, and that twenty years from now we will all be laughing at how wild it was that back in the day, Both& was the only brand doing this work.