One of the most encouraging and exciting things for all of us at Holstee is to connect with other small businesses and entreprenuers who are following their dream. We have seen firsthand how amazing it is to start small and grow, and we are so energized by the start-ups and small companies that are on the same path. 

The reality, of course, is that money is needed in order for these businesses to grow--and in turn create the jobs and goods that stimulate the economy. In an economic climate where financing for small business is becoming harder and harder to come by, crowdfunding has become a great alternative for start-ups to aquire the capital needed to thrive. 

Similar to a microfinance system like Kiva.org where many individuals each give a small loan towards a larger goal, crowdfunding allows entrepreneurs and growing companies to raise money through small investments by a large number of people. Unfortunately, there is a great amount of red tape and longstanding regulations that have made it super difficult for this to happen--leaving many entrepreners unable to bring their ideas to life.

Right now, a bill is currently in the works that seeks to remove the red tape, strengthen crowdfunding, and get behind growing business and increasing jobs. To learn more about the details surrounding the bill, check out this post by our friends at ProFounder and this article discussing the progress. You can also discover more about crowdfunding by taking a look at the petition here (your voice is needed!). 

Photo credit.

We recently made a microloan to Erlinda, a banana seller in the Philippines.

Erlinda Helbero's main source of income comes from buying and selling bananas in her community. She is 50 years old, married and has five grown-up children. She is from the village of Banlag, Valencia City, Bukidnon. Erlinda has been in her business for over five years and earns approximately 6,500 Philippine pesos (PHP) a month. In 2010, Erlinda joined HSPFI to gain access to financial services to help improve her living conditions and enable her to engage in business activities. Erlinda is requesting a loan of 5,000 PHP which will be used to purchase additional bananas to sell. This will be her first loan from HSPFI. She plans to use the additional revenue generated from the business to improve and expand her business.

We are proud to support her, and glad to support a venture that share natures candy (fruit!) with more people. We wish the best of luck to Erlinda in her growing business!

We wanted a slim wallet designed with a smart, minimalist aesthetic, produced with respect for our planet. A product that improves the lives and communities of those making it... we couldn't find it anywhere, so we went out and made it for ourselves, and now we're sharing it with you. Holstee's Recycled Wallet will be available July 2010. We have collaborated with a non-profit based in Delhi to create this vegan wallet made from collected plastic bags and newspapers. It stores the essentials- cash, credit cards and it, has a sliding window for your ID and Metro card and still so thin it will easily fit into your pocket.  It is essentially a collection of the best parts of both Michael and David's favorite past wallets. Production of this wallet helps bring new opportunities, healthcare and education to impoverished underclass of Delhi, India. To help fund our production, we are accepting pre-orders. During the pre-order period, the wallet will be available for $20 [$25 after].

Woohoo! We just got a call from the fine folks at 0260, a NYC conference and venture competition and were informed that we have been accepted as semi-finalists! Lots of excitement in the office and we are looking forward to attending the conference. Find out more at the 0260 conference on their website: http://www.0260nyc.com and let us know if you plan to attend!

Hello Holstee world! I’m Sarah, a new addition to the team!  I’m a student at the Fashion Institute of Technology here in the city and alongside another internship I’ve come aboard here at Holstee! I was able to inaugurate my first day by revamping the look of the office a bit! After getting a brief update on all the exciting things ahead for Holstee I was given the freedom to makeover a huge wall in the work area. With the Holstee Tees, Fins, inspiration, prototypes and quotes already on the wall I just re-organized, added a few core Holstee sayings and tadaaaa: a brand new Holstee wall! (Photos below.) My first day at Holstee was definitely a success. There was great music to work to provided by Mike, the official Holstee DJ and lunch to satisfy all our taste buds made by Holstee's own top chef Dave. The music, food and great people were icing on the cake since I'm able to contribute to such a great Company like Holstee. I look forward to all the exciting things ahead and I won't hold back from sharing, so stay tuned! :)

We swung into the tents at the 2010 New York Fashion Week.  We didn't have tickets to any particular runway shows, but from what we could tell, runway shows were cool- but the tent was where it's at - and I'm not just talking about the open bar.  The Tents offered a great chance to meet new + experienced designers and many others in the industry.  We brought along some fins to see what the most particular fashion community in the world thought of the Holstee Fin... and I'm proud to report- it was well received.  Check out our recently posted album on facebook to see some of the pictures.

Related articles you may enjoy!

• New York Fashion Week: Deux FM Fall 2010 Runway Show (Video) (treehugger.com)
• New York Fashion Week: JoAnn Berman (Slideshow) (treehugger.com)

We often get asked what its like to start a company from scratch. We took the new year to reflect on our first 6 months, in which we launched and began working full-time at Holstee. Our key learnings are highlighted below. While they are not ground breaking, they are lessons will help us in 2010 and beyond. THE NUMBERS Digging into financials are not fun (especially in the beginning), but they are important reality checks and a key to allowing Holstee to continue. This doesn’t mean letting them to cloud plans, but it does mean openly analyzing and discussing them. PLANNING & TIMING Our project planning is typically accurate for the first 80% of a project but the last 20% is consistently the most challenging to predict. We need to plan like everything will take twice as long and cost twice as much. This is even more true if it's the first time we're doing something. The old adage: 'Cheap, Good, Fast; pick two' continues to be valid. COLLABORATING We've been fortunate to attract + work with some amazing folks. Even still, we should never shy away from asking for references.  Once we've found the right people, we will empower every contributor by allowing them to set their own objectives and time lines, and we will work together to meet them. LOOKING FORWARD Reviewing long term goals weekly will help keep things that really matter from getting buried by daily activities. Even within our small team a check-in and check-out every week keeps our days productive and fulfilling. Creating a to-do list for the day before checking email is the key to a successful day. While reflecting on the previous year, we realized most importantly that we have much to be thankful for: we're building a company that truly reflects our values, we get to work with our best friends in a truly sweet space, and it all happens in the world's greatest city. We may not be rich, but, as my mom would say its more important to be "rich at heart."

We just got back from an amazing trip in So Cal comprised of a healthy mix of amazing Persian food, dancing and business! After marrying off Mike & Dave's sister, the HOLSTEE team proceed onto LA in search of 3 new pocket styles. After searching high and low, going through all of the latest fabrics and the classics, there they were- the greatest pocket fabrics since the 'Brunch', 'Party', 'Vacation' & 'Business' graced our HOLSTEE T's. We also had a chance to meet with our friends at Alternative Apparel (below) who clearly share our view on the importance of work life balance! Stay tuned - lots of BIG updates ahead!!