To our women,

The time of year has come to reflect back on 2018 and look forward to 2019. It’s a tradition we do as founders and it’s important that we share with our community because we would be nowhere without you. Brass is living, evolving, and transforming, just as we all are as individuals. What we are trying to build - a lasting, impactful brand - takes time, patience and care. It is constantly a work in progress. So, we’re here to share our main takeaways from the past year, a peek at our intentions for 2019, and a fun little video featuring events with our Boston women at the pop-up and the studio to celebrate the close of a great year.

The Beginning of 2018

TBH, the first quarter of the year was a challenge for us. Our resources were limited - we started the year with only 3 full-time people on our team and we were working on solidifying our first investor deal. But, your girls are scrappy. We worked on revising the site and establishing a better product road map with the designer we started working with in 2017. We kept our eyes on Spring where we finally released 5 new Foundations - The Essential Dress, The All-Day Set, The Utility Dress, and The Nonstop Top. Maybe you’ve heard of them? ;) These were the first pieces we released with our new designer and have quickly become some of our best-sellers. This was a huge win for us and really solidified to us what our women want - easy, comfortable silhouettes in fabrics that perform. (These styles have been so well received that they are some of the first styles we will be releasing in sizes 16-26 in January 2019.)

The Middle of 2018

The summer of 2018 was a time of huge learning for us. We created the Summer Pass in an effort to help women plan their summer wardrobes better and it was a big success. We realized the more we can help you plan (and reward you for being so prepared with a little discount) the better. The summer was chock full of Editions - limited quantity styles that allow us to play with color and silhouette. Many of our best-selling pieces are seasonless, so summer is an interesting time for us. We’re still figuring out how to craft summer essentials for you that feel transitional and purposeful, but we think you’ll love what we have in store for 2019 :)

We opened our first pop-up in July - one of our most exciting endeavors yet! We have to say, this was one of the most enriching and fulfilling parts of running Brass over the last 4 years. It was incredibly rewarding to meet so many women in person, see your reactions to the product IRL, and learn from you about what we are doing right and how we can improve. It’s clear to us that our strength is in creating a space where women feel comfortable and supported, like they are shopping with a friend, and gaining value in ways other than just buying clothes. We’re wrapping up the pop-up on January 4th, so you can still swing by - but we’ll have more in-person shopping in other cities in 2019!

The End of 2018

The latter part of the year really felt like we hit our stride. We hired another full-time staff member - woah, there are 4 of us now ;) And over the year added some pretty amazing part-time team members and consultants that helped us to establish a strong foundation on which to grow. Our goal is to make some of these positions full-time in 2019 so we can continue to grow Brass and our community. We also launched The Layers which were very well received and a category we look forward to expanding in the new year (think long sleeves, new necklines, and perhaps some new yarns for summer :) Throughout the year, we added more women to our private FB group, The Brass Guild. It’s a rich and positive place for women to connect about the clothes but also so many other things (jobs, children, sustainable living). It is now one of the most engaging parts of the brand and our team’s favorite place on the internet - because it’s so supportive and it’s with all of you! If you’re not yet a part of the group, join here. We really look forward to growing the Guild in the new year.

A Look to 2019

With everything that we learned this past year, we truly can not wait for 2019. We’re kicking the year off with a bang by adding sizes 16-26 in key styles at the end of January. We wish we had done this sooner, but really worked hard on doing it right so that we can deliver a fabulous product to more women. We’re also focusing on bringing you more of what you love (think Ponte Pants, All-Day Set, Nonstop Top) in more colors. We have some really awesome new silhouettes coming in the Spring and have listened to so much of your feedback, about what like and what you don’t, in order to deliver more of what you love. Plus, we’re working on styles you’ve asked for over the past 4 years (modern suiting including a blazer and even some denim).

We truly cannot thank you enough for continuing to show up and support Brass. Whether you own 2 pieces or 200, each of you are significant to us. We are striving to build a brand that matters, that makes an impact in women’s lives, and puts something positive out in the world. When you purchase from us, you are supporting that mission and we couldn’t do it without you. We wish you all a wonderful New Year’s Eve and start to 2019. And if you ever have feedback or something you’d like to share - email us. We’re only 4 women, but we always have time for you :)

With love & gratitude,

Jay & Katie