Rain or shine, the majority of students on Chapel Hill’s campus can be found sporting a UNC T-shirt.
Part of the Carolina experience is watching your once normal wardrobe grow into a mass of almost identical Carolina blue T-shirts. Each memorializes an event (or 5K) and expresses your school pride. But whether your T-shirt is a freebie from Fall Fest or a purchase from Student Stores, eventually they all begin to look the same.
When you want your college clothing to represent your fashion sense, however, School House is the only option.
School House is a collegiate clothing company located in Durham that was created to cater to today’s college students. Beyond being a clothing company, though, it is a success story with a strong foundation in ethics and a desire to be different.
School House began when CEO and Duke graduate, Rachel Weeks, traveled to Sri Lanka in 2007 as a Fulbright scholar with the goal of creating a “socially responsible clothing company. In just four years, School House has expanded its offerings to offer collegiate apparel to more than 100 campuses. Weeks has also been featured in Teen Vogue, WWD and The Wall Street Journal.
The mantra of School House is “American Collegiate Craftsmanship.” These three words embody the mission of School House. The first word, American, represents “made in America” in the most literal way possible. All of School House’s clothing is manufactured by local N.C. companies and East Coast businesses. By living up to the American aspect of School House’s mantra, they are reintroducing the idea of homegrown manufacturing, revitalizing local production and bringing jobs back to North Carolina.
The second part of the mantra: collegiate, represents the clientele the company caters toward. School House sells clothing in bookstores in over 100 colleges and universities across the country, from Harvard to UNC to Lehigh and Washington State. A massive community of college students and alumni reap the benefits of School House clothing.
The last part of School House’s mantra, craftsmanship, defines the care the company takes to make sure every piece of clothing is of high quality. The clothing is not mass produced; it is created with an attention to detail and a personal investment unseen in many other companies.
While School House’s mantra “American Collegiate Craftsmanship” defines the brand’s unique vision and explains the success of its products, it does not give enough credit to the team behind the scenes. A small and talented crew makes this environmentally friendly possible. When you walk into the office of School House, it is evident from the racks of samples and photos of future clothes and ideas covering the walls that this team is passionate about what they do. As a new intern I am proud to be a part of that team and watch this company continue to grow. School House is a small and intimate company making big things happen.
Sources:
Go Heels Go America pin (photo): http://www.goheelsgoamerica.com/
Screen shot of their website (photo): http://www.shopschoolhouse.com/
Hark The Sound T-shirt (photo): http://www.footballfanatics.com/COLLEGE_North_Carolina_Tar_Heels_T-Shirts