Micha Weinblatt is not your average T-shirt designer. One of his tops is emblazoned with ''I'm Not a Gardener, I Just Like Hos,'' while another has ''No One's Ugly After 2 AM.''
His tops are cheeky. And they sell.
Weinblatt launched his shirt design company in 2005, at a University of Maryland bar. If the shirts flopped, Weinblatt would return to school and finish a fifth year getting his bachelor's and master's degrees. He had plans to run for public office.
The shirts sold out. So Weinblatt skipped the final year of school, and moved into his parents' basement to put all his energies into his business.He named his company Crooked Monkey after watching monkeys perform in Thailand. The monkey, he said, "was jovial, carefree, witty, a crowd pleaser. He was, and still is, the inspiration for our brand.''
Weinblatt's startup capital included $25,000 from initial sales, personal savings and four maxed-out credit cards. Today, Potomac, Md.-based Crooked Monkey brings in $750,000 in revenue and has 10 employees.
The shirts sell at Urban Outfitters, Nordstrom, Kitson, Fred Segal and over 550 other retailers worldwide. Asked if he still has plans to run for office, Weinblatt said. ''Not after the T-shirts I've made.''
