Special Report: Dirt to Shirt
Augusta, Ga. (WJBF)– The COVID-19 pandemic was no doubt one of the most important reassessment points of the 21st century. We look back and see how much we learned, how much technology helped us, and how, as a society, our values and priorities shifted.
From a manufacturing perspective, the pandemic showed us that there wasn’t really an American supply chain.
That’s why, back in 2020, the Presidential Task Force called on a Swainsboro tee-shirt company, America Knits, to abandon their products and start producing massive amounts of PPE. The team there rose to the challenge and even worked out a 24-hour operation, because of social distancing during COVID.
Click here for 2020 story about America Knits.
The next year, Governor Brian Kemp recognized America Knits president, Steve Hawkins, in his State-of-the-State address for his willingness to promote the “Georgia Made” concept. That led to an idea for a Georgia-grown brand of apparel called Seeds II Seams.
“The inspiration behind Seeds II Seams started as a result of the pandemic and the making of PPE supplies. The state of Georgia and an initiative called Field to Closets approached us and they wanted to make scrubs for 17 different rural hospitals in Georgia.”
They wanted Hawkins to create a Georgia supply chain– and he had the industry contacts to make that happen. His primary question was, could they use Georgia cotton?
“And they’re like, ‘Yeah- there’s plenty of great cotton in Georgia.’ I knew I drove through cotton fields all the time, I just didn’t know what characteristics it had and if it would be suitable for our needs.”
The supply chain launched in Tifton, Georgia — and it’s a fraction of the distance most apparel travels in world-wide supply chains.
“We developed a supply chain and then at that point we’re like, let’s adapt this to tee-shirts. The average tee-shirt travels over 17,000 miles, that’s the average tee-shirt that an American is wearing today. Ours travels 238 miles- as the crow flies- and that’s the reason the crow is our icon.”
Jennie: So, sustainability is a big part of what your mission is?
“I think that’s the biggest story. Seeds II Seams- yeah, it’s a great fit… yeah, it’s soft cotton… it’s beautiful… but the sustainability part- I think the young people care about. They’re gonna be on this earth a lot more years than what I am. So, I think they care more about that. And if they understand our message, I think it will resonate with them.”
And while you may not have heard of Seeds II Seams yet, you certainly recognize the other brands of tee-shirts -the big names- that are America Knits customers. But here’s a little secret:
“Our fabric is better than their’s! Their’s is a carded ringspun- and that’s a little cheaper yarn. Ours is combed ringspun.”
And why does combed ringspun matter? Hawkins says it’s what makes his product different- it all starts with the cotton.
“The best fabrics are always combed ringspun yarn. That’s what you start with. The Georgia cotton meets those characteristics. The fabric has to be the best. We also think the weight of our shirts is the perfect weight. It looks good on fit people and it looks good on people who maybe are not as fit as others!”
The same quality goes for their fleece sweatshirts.
“It’s also 100% cotton, which you don’t usually see, but once again we are all about cotton because cotton is healthier. Our fleece is pre-tumbled so that the shrinkage is taken out before we ever spread it on the automated spreading that we have.”
And this is what Hawkins wants you to remember about Seeds II Seams: from the cotton grown right here in Georgia dirt, all the way to the finished product, everything about this shirt represents sustainability, and that’s the mission of Seeds II Seams.
Hawkins’ goal is to serve all of his customers, even when it may seem counterintuitive, like those who want something made from (gasp!)… polyester.
“They’re actually coming out with now with some studies that polyester is actually harmful because it’s made out of petroleum, so that against your skin- who knows in years to come what that might do to you. But we are gonna offer customers a sustainable option. We think polyester is a 4-letter word, to be honest, we don’t like to use it, we’re all about cotton, but if somebody’s insistent, and for whatever reason they need it, then we’re gonna offer them a recycled plastic– drinking bottles into polyester– so that at least we’re staying with our mission.”
A mission that, again, comes down to one word: sustainability.
“I think we are the most sustainable shirt sold in America- and I’ll tell you the reason why. There are sewing factories in California, but there’s no yarn spun in California… all the yarn is spun in the Southeast. So, there’s no way they can be but so sustainable because the yarn has to be either shipped from the Far East or from North Carolina to California, and there’s 2500 miles or so right there, so we have such an advantage being in this part of the country. Nobody can be as sustainable as us unless they open a plant in the South.”
The Seeds II Seams brand is made from cotton grown at Davis Family Farms in Doe Run, Georgia…. and Lee Family Farms in Moultrie, Georgia.
For more information about the company’s sustainable clothing, go to their website, www.seeds2seams.com
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WJBF.
