There are roughly two kinds of brand announcements in our world. The first is loud — a press release, a launch campaign, a product page that goes live at midnight to the sound of a thousand pre-scheduled posts. The other is the kind we prefer.
Today, quietly, we'd like to introduce a partner who has been a long time coming.
The Freya Brand joins Lavish Gains as our first founding brand partner. They are a small, women-led house — handwoven Panama hats, mostly, made by Ecuadorian artisans whose mothers and grandmothers taught them the craft. The fibers come from the Toquilla palm, sustainably cultivated in the highlands of Northern Ecuador. The same hat, made the same way, for three thousand years. We have wanted them on Lavish since the day we wrote our first letter.
Why it matters.
Lavish Gains exists for a particular bet: that the next era of luxury isn't about reach, it's about identity. Not more campaigns — real knowledge of who's buying. Not more impressions — a customer the brand can actually write back to, by name.
"There can be no happiness if the things we believe in are different from the things we do."
— Freya Stark, 1893–1993
The brand is named for her, and was built to that line. Each hat is woven by hand by a woman whose mother and grandmother wove before her, in a tradition that predates most countries. The income from weaving lets the artisans keep their way of life — at home, with their children, in remote Andean villages. The materials are organic. The dyes are organic. The company is one hundred percent women-owned and women-operated. Each hat blocks 98% of the sun's rays and is built to last a lifetime. None of that is a marketing line.
What this means, if you're a member.
Starting today, Freya pieces will appear in the Lavish marketplace. Founding members will be first in line for new releases — including a small, numbered set of hats Freya is making specifically for the Lavish cohort, available later this season. The Concierge can already source any current Freya piece for you. The brand stands behind every hat for its lifetime — wear it, travel with it, bring it back when it needs care.
You can read more about Freya at their site: thefreyabrand.com.
Who's next.
Freya is the first of ten. We are building a small founding cohort of brand partners — not a hundred, not a thousand, ten — who are ready to know their customers for the first time, and who would rather grow slowly with us than quickly with someone else.
Six brands left in the founding cohort.
If you make something we should be paying attention to — write to us. The conversation is short, and the seat is for the long term.
Apply for the cohort →Welcome, Freya. We're glad you're here.