| Founder(s) | Bert Jacobs & John Jacobs |
|---|---|
| Type | Private |
| Founded | 1994 |
| Location | Boston, MA, USA |
| Employees | Over 200 [1] |
| Motto | Do what you like. Like what you do. |
| Website | www.lifeisgood.com |
Life is good, Inc. is a New England–based apparel and accessories wholesaler, retailer, and lifestyle brand founded in 1994 and best known for its optimistic tee shirts and hats, many of which feature a smiling stick figure named Jake and the three-word registered trademark "Life is good." Life is good has expanded its product lines from tee shirts and caps in the early years to a full and varied line of apparel for men, women, and children, as well as an increasing number of accessories categories. They offer over 900 different items in 14 categories.[1] Products are sold online via the company's web site, in approximately 4,500 retail stores[2] in all 50 states in the United States, and in 30 countries[3] and growing worldwide.
Contents |
In 1989 brothers Bert and John Jacobs designed their first tee shirts. They began selling their designs in the streets of Boston and out of an old van at colleges and street fairs along the East Coast of the United States. During these road trips they lived out of their van, sleeping on top of stacks of tee shirts and subsisting largely on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.
After five years in business, the brothers admit that they had "collected some good stories, but were not very prosperous." They persisted, searching for a unique brand that would capture the optimism they felt and their belief that there was room in the market for a positive message to counterbalance what they perceived as the heavy dose of negativity found in contemporary news reporting and media. In 1994, following a not-so-successful road trip, they returned to Boston, unsure of the future of their business. It was their common practice to gather friends at their apartment following such trips to share stories and to ask their friends to comment on drawings and sayings posted on their living room walls.[4] In retrospect, the brothers realized that these were the first focus groups for their business.
On this occasion in 1994, one drawing received considerable favorable attention from their friends. The drawing was the head of a beret-wearing, smiling stick figure and the mantra "Life is good"—together expressing simply everything the brothers believed in. They named the figure Jake and printed up 48 shirts bearing a smiling Jake and the words "Life is good." At a street fair in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the shirts sold out in less than an hour. With that, the "Life is good" brand was born. The brothers began to sell tee shirts and hats featuring Jake in local stores. Demand for the merchandise grew quickly and has continued to grow in the succeeding years, as has national recognition of the brand.
Life is good has expanded its product lines from tee shirts and caps in the early years to a full and varied line of apparel for men, women, and children, as well as an increasing number of accessories categories. In addition to its clothing lines, Life is good now features dog products, beach toys, carry bags, drink containers, car accessories, picture frames, and furniture. In spring and summer of 2008, Life is good rolled out three new lines: Good Karma, a 100% organic cotton label; Good Move, athletic-inspired and performance-oriented warm up and work out gear; and Good Kids, a new label for boys, girls, toddlers, and babies.
Jake, the company's smiling icon, is consistently designed to express optimism and an appreciation of life's simple pleasures, such as hiking and many other outdoor activities, playing a guitar, eating an ice cream cone, enjoying a sunset, or simply relaxing with a glass of lemonade. At present, a far larger number of graphics and products do not feature Jake or his frequent canine companion, Rocket. However, these graphics and products consistently promote an optimistic outlook and healthy messages through uncomplicated designs and simple words of wit and wisdom.
Today, Life is good products are sold in approximately 4,500 retail stores[2][5] in all 50 states in the United States as well as in 30 countries worldwide. The brand is distributed through multiple customer channels, including outdoor, sporting goods, lifestyle, gift shops, spas, and health and fitness. There are also 114 Genuine Neighborhood Shoppes (GNS)[6] in the United States—independently owned stores that sell exclusively Life is good products. In addition, the company operates five retail stores and a successful online, direct-to-consumer business.
The first independently owned Canadian Genuine Neighborhood Shoppe, called Jake by the Lake opened in Westport, Ontario on April 4, 2008.
Life is good is known for its charitable work and recently established the "Life is good. Kids Foundation" which trains Life is good Playmakers to improve the physical, emotional and social well-being of children. Life is Good donates 100% of its profits from the sale of fundraising tees and other products to the Kids Foundation. To date, The Life is Good Kids Foundation has raised over $4 million to help kids facing unfair challenges.[7]
On July 7, 2007, Life is good debuted a new baseball theme festival called Life is good at Fenway, held at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts. The event featured live music and the world's largest game of catch in the stands, games and art activities for children and families in the concourses below, and The World's Greatest Backyard Athlete Competition on the field and Green Monster. In conjunction with donated tee shirt and hat sales, satellite Watermelon Festivals held across the country, and funds raised from the World's Greatest Backyard Athlete Competition, Life is good's Fenway Festival raised a record $802,636 for children's charities.[8]
The Watermelon Festival was another summer event put on by Life is good. It featured live music, games and activities for children and adults and unlimited free watermelon. The proceeds for this event benefit Project Joy, a Boston-based non-profit organization that assists in the needs of traumatized children. In 2007 Life is good expanded the Watermelon Festival beyond Boston, hosting similar events in towns across America. Life is good usually host this festival on the Boston Common, but in 2007, due to the park service re-sodding the entire park, they debuted Life is good at Fenway, a baseball themed festival held at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts.
Life is good hosted Pumpkin Festivals from 2003 to 2006, with all proceeds benefiting children's charities. The events featured live music, games, and activities for children and adults. On October 21, 2006, the Boston Pumpkin Festival set a new world's record, with a total of 30,128 carved and lit pumpkins lighting up the Boston Common.[9]
The 2010 Life is good Festival at Blue Hills was a successful weekend of fun and fundraising, as over 40,000 attended.[10] More than $740,000 was raised[3] for the Life is good Kids Foundation will help thousands of kids to overcome life-threatening challenges such as violence, poverty and physical illness.