I was with Jimmy Hendricks and Patrick Dillon the night they official launched Collar Free, the online community for graphic and fashion designers, to the public. They invited me to their North Park pad turned office and I got to see a very real portrait of an early stage startup. Now, 7 months later, Collar Free is starting to emerge as one of San Diego’s more innovative startups. I recently checked in with the Co-Founders to find out what they’ve been up to and where they’re headed.

The Collar Free brand has transitioned from an edgy and almost too hip lifestyle brand—remember the condom with every t-shirt gimmick—to a savvier and more sophisticated brand focused on fashion for independent people.

It’s not just talk either. Hendricks assured me that one of their main priorities is to not only recruit more high quality designers, but to find more opportunities for the designers to win the t-shirt contests and get financially compensated for their designs. In order to do that, Dillon and Hendricks are focused on volume so that Collar Free can support more t-shirt design competitions each month. They’re also finding new ways to reward the designers for their creativity, like the nifty Toys for Tots design competition. You’ll also notice an added touch to each tee you purchase—check the inside label, yep that’s the winning designer’s name. I’m no designer, but I’d love to compete for the opportunity to have my name printed on a t-shirt label. Don’t forget that winning designers get $200 upfront and $1 - $2 for every t-shirt sold.

As for funding, they’re working with $180,000 in private funding and looking for an additional $200,00 in angel investments. They’re already bringing in $25,000 in revenue per month with a pretty legit business model. Not only are they continuing to sell the winning t-shirt designs, but they’re also partnering with sites like Zazzle for on demand printing of t-shirt designs. Collar Free is also taking their online business to the streets and actively working to increase their retail footprint—their tees will be sold at the Hard Rock Hotel Spa before the end of the month and they’re working on getting a total of 10 local retail deals before the end of the year. Dillon and Hendricks are also exploring creating a white label design competition platform so that other businesses can skin and use it for their own business purposes.

If you’re up for a party, stop by Collar Free’s event tonight at EXY in downtown San Diego (right across from the Ivy). They will have 2 hours of hosted appetizers, vodka samples and drink specials from U4RIK vodka, a DJ, and special gift books from A Little Scene.

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