Los Angeles, California · Est. 2018 · Founded by Jeremy Cai
Jeremy Cai grew up in Chicago watching his family's manufacturing business supply auto parts to BMW, Tesla, and Nissan -- and understood early that the label and the quality are rarely the same thing. He founded Italic in Los Angeles in 2018 after visiting over 200 factories worldwide, selecting the same makers that produce for Prada, Burberry, and the Ritz-Carlton, and selling their work directly -- no markup, no logo. The towels are made by the same factories as the ones in five-star hotel rooms. They just don't cost like it.
Jeremy Cai was 23 years old and a Thiel Fellow when he founded Italic in 2018 with a question the luxury industry preferred nobody ask: if the factory makes the same product for Prada and for Italic, what exactly are you paying for when you buy Prada? His family had been in manufacturing for decades -- supplying BMW, Tesla, and Nissan with auto parts -- and he had grown up understanding the gap between what things cost to make and what they cost to buy.
He spent two years visiting over 200 factories in Italy, China, and beyond before selecting a small group of manufacturers based on expertise, ethical working conditions, sustainability, and craft. The same factories that produce bedding for the Ritz-Carlton and the Four Seasons. The same mills that supply Burberry with cashmere. The same workshops behind Williams Sonoma's home goods. Italic sells their work directly, at a fraction of the retail price, under its own name. Forbes 30 Under 30, Fast Company's Top 10 Most Innovative Retail Companies of 2021.
On a registry, Italic is the category for the couple who cares deeply about quality and not at all about logos -- the towels that feel extraordinary every single morning, at a price that makes sense.
