Flint and Tinder: A Case Study in American-Made UnderwearWhat retailers can learn from this innovative men's underwear company.
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New York City's Flint and Tinder has brought meaning back to "made in the USA" in a technical menswear category: premium undergarments.
"Underwear hasn't been made in high volume in this country for the better part of my lifetime," says founder and CEO Jake Bronstein. In April 2012 he launched aKickstartercampaign that became the platform's best-funded fashion initiative, with more than 5,500 backers pledging nearly $300,000 (on an initial goal of just $30,000). Since then, growth has been "astronomical"--more than $2 million in revenue within a year of operation. (This includes another successful Kickstarter campaign to produce the company's "10-Year Hoodie," which comes with a decade of free mending.) Even more noteworthy: Bronstein wants to take manufacturing in-house. "We're in the process of building our own factories, building our own supply chain from the ground up," he says. "The first factory should come online in the winter, and that'll be the start of it."
