Leander - Liberty Hill Edition | November 2023

Community

BY KAMERYN GRIESSER

Civvies sources fabric from uniforms from every branch of the U.S. military.

Civvies owners Mina and Marlo Tadrous moved to Leander in 2022, and are continuing to grow the brand locally.

PHOTOS BY KAMERYN GRIESSERCOMMUNITY IMPACT

Leander clothing line repurposes military uniforms It can be hard to know what to do with old military uniforms, which is why many end up

The Tadrouses donate ten percent of all of Civvies’ sales to veterans organizations.

tops, sunglasses and hat designs through their website and pop-up booths at local events. The backstory Civvies founder Mina Tadrous said when he arrived to the U.S. from Egypt 20 years ago, he was surprised to learn that military service was not compulsory. “I really appreciated that there were people who sign up to serve, that they make a sacrice voluntarily for people they don’t even know,” Tadrous said. “And since I couldn’t serve myself, I wanted to nd a way to get involved in the veteran community.” An accountant by trade, Tadrous had no previous experience in clothing production when he started

donated to surplus stores or lost in the attic, but one Leander-based apparel company found a way to save them from collecting dust while honoring the service members they once belonged to. The gist Civvies is an online clothing brand that salvages fabric from U.S. military uniforms to create T-shirts and accessories for everyday wear. Ten percent of all sales are donated to national veterans organizations, such as Freedom Jam USA, a charitable country concert series, or Oath of Action, a natural disaster relief organization. Along with T-shirts, Civvies sells hoodies, tank

Civvies back in 2018. His rst designs were created using fabric glue and scissors. “It’s always been 100% a family operation. ... We were running it out of our garage and living room,” said Marlo Tadrous, Tadrous’ wife, who helps operate Civvies. The present In 2022, the pair moved from Southern California to Leander, and according to Tadrous, Civvies has only continued to grow since then, with their online sales reaching across the country.

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