We’ve Got Your Back…and Your Front

A lot of people have asked why we have messages on the front and back of our tees and hoodies. The answer is actually pretty simple: We need the real estate! The most inspirational messages can’t be boiled down into soundbites and some of our illustrations need context to make the impact we’re looking for. 

Take the shirt above from our “For the Culture” line, for example. Our 44th president, Barack Obama, made mistakes and experienced setbacks and even hatred while travelling the path to the Oval Office.  But no matter how those things made him feel, he drew strength from the fact that the future rewards those who press on. 

We all need that understanding to endure the challenges we’ll face on the way to achieving our dreams and pursuing our destinies. That’s why we wanted to go with both President Obama’s image and a quote from one of his speeches to illustrate that truth. 

The quote is from Obama’s June 16, 2006 Northwestern University Commencement Address and it comes from a section we love but is way too long to fit on a shirt. Here it is: 

“Making your mark on the world is hard. If it were easy, everybody would do it. But it’s not. It takes patience, it takes commitment, and it comes with plenty of failure along the way. The real test is not whether you avoid this failure, because you won’t. It’s whether you let it harden or shame you into inaction, or whether you learn from it; whether you choose to persevere. The future rewards those who press on. I don't have time to feel sorry for myself. I don't have time to complain. I'm going to press on.”

So yes: we wanted to celebrate President Obama with this shirt. But we also wanted to celebrate the idea that making your vision a reality requires commitment, doing the work and, of course, faith. 

There’s no elevator to the top so you’ll have to take the stairs. Let’s make the climb together.