SAVANNAH, Georgia -- Tyler Merritt understands the power of community, belonging and purpose. It's what drew him toward the military as a high school senior, not long after the Sept. 11 attacks. This service eventually led him to become an Apache helicopter pilot in the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment, one of the most heavily deployed military units.
Thirteen years ago, Merritt cofounded Nine Line Apparel, named for the nine-line distress call medevacs use for calling in a combat injury. Since the very beginning, the company has donated a portion of its proceeds to a foundation it set up to serve veterans, as well as military and first responder charities.
Nine Line Apparel began in Merritt's garage in Savannah, Georgia. It has grown from its flagship storefront along the Savannah Riverwalk to a 50,000-square-foot factory on the outskirts of town and a total of eight stores.
Merritt said the company is ready to expand to at least five more locations. It's decided, in keeping with its mission of community and shared purpose, to step away from the traditional route of seeking a loan from a corporate bank, instead offering its customers a chance to "buy in" and be front-line investors in the company's future.
Merritt said Nine Line's first crowdfunding campaign goal is to raise $2.5 million, not just to grow its brick-and-mortar locations but also to expand its Savannah production locations that employ 300 people, many of whom are military veterans.
Merritt told the Washington Examiner the company's been growing rapidly for the past 10 years. While he has taken on his share of bank notes and entertained the opportunity of taking on private equity, he believed that giving the Nine Line community the ability to have a stake in the company was the way to go.
"At the end of the day, the idea of a private equity group assuming control of an organization founded on purpose didn't seem a good fit," he said with a smile. "Plus, I wasn't ready to give up control at this point."
Merritt said what the company is doing by crowdfunding is offering minority shares at an incredible valuation so Nine Line fans, customers, family members and friends can get in at a good price.
"They can be brand ambassadors, and they can help micro-influence to grow and promote the brand they are now part of," he said.
Plus, Merritt added, he worries that private equity investors want to drastically pivot their initiatives to meet a quick return.
"A lot of times, product equity looks for majority control and flips within three to five years," he said. "So it's just a growth above all. It's not that I don't want to be hyperprofitable, but there is an importance to maintain our identity and keep our values and stick to that mission."
Merritt said Nine Line, as it is right now, is "hyperprofitable" and provides returns, but it wants to take on more capital to also reach major initiatives.
"One is a piece of machinery that's worth well over $1 million to expand our production," he said. "The other is to expand to more stores to meet the demand of our customer base."
JT Taylor, one of the original cofounders of Black Rifle Coffee Company, has stepped up as a friend and partner with Merritt. Its veteran-fueled coffee and apparel are available at all the storefronts, baristas and all, as a major investor in the capital drive. Taylor told the Examiner that his support "was an answer to a call for a company that is meeting the demand for American job growth and for a company with purpose."
Merritt said Nine Line uses ethically sourced materials as part of its unapologetic patriotic ethos, which has been at the heart of the brand since its very beginnings. Their crowdsourcing is just one more way to grow and be part of revitalizing American manufacturing.
To date, nearly 2,000 people have registered to invest, and the investment opportunity closes at the end of September.
"For our customers who believe in our mission, it is an exciting time for them to have a stake in that mission and our purpose of doing the right things for their fellow man and not expect anything in return," Merritt said.
"That's been our mantra. If we can provide aid and support to organizations, individuals in need that are good humans, we can truly believe that those things come back tenfold, and that seems to hold true in this case," he said of the countless first responders, military members, veterans and the disaster relief efforts the company has supported since 2012.
Merritt said that of all the apparel he has made over the years, the one shirt he gets the most compliments on was one of the first and one of the simplest.
"It simply says, 'I'm feeling great again,'" Merritt said. "That's who we are and who is part of our community, helping people feel great again. And to have our customers invested in something that evokes that is really the heart of who we are."
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