"What the Hell is Read a Book?"

THE WEEKLY READ #1, "What the Hell is Read a Book?"

So this is the first newsletter.. How should we start? I originally started this thing out with “Hello, everybody!” but that didn’t suit my fancy. Anyways, I feel the best way to start out our weekly newsletters is by letting you guys in on how, when, and why we started this brand. What we are all about here at Read a Book.  

I think the best route for telling the story of Read a Book’s birth is to start out giving some context.  Read a Book is run by me (Tanner), Jack, and Sam.  Jack and Sam also own and run a brand called S’envoler Studio that works out of a physical studio in Los Angeles.  I have worked for their brand on and off since 2021. Jack and I have always been real distractions for each other at the studio when trying to work.  The two of us often burst into conversations that can last hours as we theorize, philosophize, and of course, joke. These conversations usually lead us to one-liners that we use to summarize the concepts we just discussed and what conclusions we came to.  These one-liners find their way into our conversations every day after, helping remind us of perspectives we find important at the time. We started writing some of these phrases down, hoarding them like little wisdom goblins. 

With that in mind, let’s fast forward to January 2024 when Jack and I decided we wanted to run a brand together. Jack had been running S’envoler for a few years now and I had just come off of running Pretty Boy (RIP, 2020-2023).  Read a Book started from a want, nay a desire, to make simple clothing.  T-shirts with quotes and designs that were light-hearted, goofy, and inspiring.  We just needed a name. Jack and I brainstormed names for the brand for a few weeks until we landed upon Read a Book.  It felt cool, unique, and suited our vision of what the brand was and would become. Things started to click!  

*I do want to add, I have started many brands, businesses, etc with friends and usually coming up with the name is way harder than it was in this case.  We were ready to work.*

Then, one night at Jack's house after work we decided to start designing.  Flipping through our notes of phrases, we started putting some into Adobe Illustrator.  Jack began playing with fonts, shapes, and placements.  We ended up making all 18 designs for Chapter One that night. Later that week, we convinced Sam to give us his blessing to make the screens and start making our vision physical. 

Since then, we have cut out 8 of the designs. “Addition by subtraction.” (Andy Bernard, The Office) Our vision of what we want the brand to be is growing while simultaneously getting tighter.  We want this brand to be a community of cool, like-minded kids like ourselves.  We want to be a home for the introspective free-thinkers that also like dressing cool.  We want this brand to be a brand that can grow as we grow.  Ever-changing with a strong foundation. 

 I must mention: I do not want this brand to be just t-shirts anymore.  I don’t even want it to be just clothes.  I want to use this brand as a platform to make any ideas I have come to life.  Whether that be paintings, rugs, snowboards, whatever. I just want to make stuff that I think is cool.  

So, here we are.  The final paragraph of our FIRST newsletter.  How time flies. I want to thank you if you have read this far.  These weekly emails will be my way of letting you guys have a closer look at what’s going on with the brand and where my head is at. 

With much love and peace, please remember:

Have a great day

and Read a Book.