Life is good

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Life is good
Type Private
Founder(s) Bert Jacobs & John Jacobs
Headquarters Boston, MA, USA
Employees Over 200 [1]
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 T-shirts and hats, many of which feature a smiling stick figure named Jake and the registered trademark "Life is good."

In 1989 brothers Bert and John Jacobs designed their first T-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. 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.[2] On this occasion, one drawing received considerable favorable attention from their friends: the head of a beret-wearing, smiling stick figure and the phrase "Life is good." The brothers named the character 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. The brothers began to sell T-shirts and hats featuring Jake in local stores. Demand for the merchandise grew quickly, as did national recognition of the brand.

Life is good expanded its product lines from T-shirts and caps in the early years to a full 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 in the U.S.,[3][4] and in 30 countries.[5]

Today, Life is good products are sold in approximately 4,500 retail stores[3] 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.

See also

  • Despair, Inc., company that produces souvenirs that satirize corporate motivational posters

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Buchanan, Leigh (2009-10-01). "Life Lessons". Inc. Magazine. Retrieved 2011-08-18. 
  2. ↑ "Bert and John's Open Road". Roadtrip Nation. 2007-8. Retrieved 2011-08-18. 
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Wilson, Eric (2008-07-24). "Everything’s Fine! My T-Shirt Says So.". New York Times. Retrieved 2011-08-18. 
  4. ↑ Anderman, Joan (2009-03-17). "A positive outlook? Apparel company says bad times make its message more vital". The Boston Globe. Retrieved 2011-08-18. 
  5. ↑ "Discussing the "good Life" with Jim Laughlin, Director of Communications at Life is good". FeaturedBiz.com. 2010-11-03. Retrieved 2011-08-18. 
  6. ↑ Google Maps and Andrew Swank (2011-08-04). Life is good Stores (Map). http://maps.google.com/maps/ms?msid=213826836750309411102.0004a9b091bd382c7ec29&msa=0&ll=34.885931,-95.712891&spn=46.208689,107.138672. Retrieved 2011-08-18.

Sources

External links

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