We had a goal: to find a factory that could help us make 'The perfect T-shirt for tall men'. We chose Portugal because we had heard it was the best country in the world for clothing production.
In 2014, we packed our savings and took a flight to Portugal
Thorough quality requirements and factory testing
We had received an excel sheet of clothing factories from the Chamber of Commerce in Portugal and now drove around the country to find the best factory. Of course, equipment had to be tried and tested thoroughly.
Tall men + short ladies = dynamite
The Portuguese were nice, skilled and understood our needs. "The t-shirt should be longer when you go a size up, not wider!". Together with Picos (our first factory) we developed the First Tee. Norway's first t-shirt specially adapted for tall men.
We filled Martin's booth with t-shirts and shipped out before and after the 'day job'
A simple website was launched and slowly but surely, sales began to tick in. We met early every morning before going to our regular jobs and made sure that tall men all over the country got their new t-shirts sent to them.
The post that changed everything
Our first full year of operation went slowly. Wasn't there a need for t-shirts specially adapted for tall men? We tried everything; Facebook advertising, posting on Instagram, launch parties, sales via physical store - you name it. Nothing gave the sausage any particular zing. But when it looked darkest, we got an ad in the Norwegian Magazine D2, and that same weekend we sold out our entire collection - there IS a need for clothes for tall men out there!
The ball is rolling in Porto
Every time we launch a new garment, we sell out and we have to go down to our factory in Porto more and more often. From just selling t-shirts, we now offer sweaters, shirts, trousers and jackets. Porto becomes our new favorite football team and we watch Champions League matches between product development.
From part-time to full-time
In 2020, the NOK 60,000 we went to Portugal with in 2014 has turned into a turnover of NOK 3.5 million and we decide to quit our day jobs and invest full time.
Co-owned by over 300 Tall Customers
We are very proud to be part-owned by our customers. We have collected money twice and in total have received over 300 customers who are on our journey. Surely it must be the world's longest owners of a company?
World leader in clothing for tall men, with Clean Scandinavian Design
Since we went full-time in 2020, we have had good growth in Norway, and we have also started selling to Sweden, Denmark and Germany.
There are competitors for tall men out there, but none have our unique Norwegian design and cut. It's mostly Big & Tall.
Our vision is therefore to become the world leader in clothing for tall men who want a narrower cut in a stylish Norwegian design. It's no easy task, but we believe that all tall men out there deserve clothes that fit their height, make them look good and feel great.
