After he traveled with the Semester at Sea program in 2011, Ryan Westberg and a few of his friends created an idea that would bring the world together by just using fabric. Serengetee is a clothing company that raises money for countries in poverty. With such a great turn out at this week’s trunk show, it is not a surprise that this company will expand even further. Serengetee is launching new styles such as crop-tops, button downs and bracelets and also will feature a customized pocket by YouTube sensation, Jimmy Tatro in March. These pocket tee’s are making a statement around the University of Arizona so make sure to buy one and join the mission to spread global awareness.
Ryan Westberg, Co-Founder of Serengetee
Age: 21
Hometown: Fairfield, Conn.
Major: Economics
Year: Senior
What are some of the extracurricular activities you are involved with on campus?
I’m a member of Pi Kappa Alpha. I also try to get involved with most events that go on. Now that Serengetee is bigger, we are able to get involved and fundraise. We raised over $750 selling shirts at the trunk show at the University of Arizona Bookstore and Rec Center this past week. Five dollars of each purchase went towards building a school in Ghana.
How did you come up with Serengetee?
In Fall 2011, I studied abroad with Semester at Sea, where I traveled to 13 different countries all over Africa, Asia, and Central America. I was able to see how amazing each country was and also see the poverty and problems that exist.
Who else is involved?
I met one of my best friends on the trip, Jeff Steitz, and we started collecting fabrics from all the countries we visited. With a lot of collaboration we decided to make them into pockets on t-shirts. Nate Holterman, who was studying abroad as well, does all our charity partnerships. Every fabric is connected to a charity in that region.
When did you start the company?
We launched our website February 17th of last year.
The shirts:
Basic white or black shirts. Available in crew neck, v-neck, tank tops, razor back and long sleeves. Each shirt comes with a pocket from around the world. Pocket patterns also include flags from different countries, cities and states.
Who inspires you?
Two of my biggest inspirations have to be Blake Mycoskie, founder of Toms, and Adam Braun, founder of Pencils of Promise, which is the charity I am building the school in Ghana through. He spoke at the beginning of the voyage at the Semester at Sea. His nonprofits are the biggest to start in the past 5 years.
What do you plan to do after graduation?
We have a two-week trip to Costa Rica this summer. Then I will be living in Los Angeles focusing full-time at the production facility. At the end of September we are going on another trip around the world and will be filming and blogging the entire experience. We will be sourcing fabrics while we are there and also meeting our charity partners, which will be fun.We hope to go on tours when we come back to bring global awareness about problems going on in these countries.
Visit the website for more information: www.serengetee.com