Why We Love: Freeman Seattle

Let it be known that Seattle gets less rainfall each year than other American cities like New York or Atlanta—but that doesn’t stop us from appreciating a flawless raincoat.

At Hotel Theodore, we’re big fans of the coats from Freeman Seattle, a local company that husband and wife team Scott and Brittany Freeman founded in 2010. Produced right here in Seattle, the coats use the same premium fabrics that you’d find on a big-brand rain jacket, but come with hand-finished accents and care only a boutique can provide.
Washington natives, Scott and Brittany’s path to opening Freeman started with a rip in one of their own coats. “Scott had a vintage jacket he’d picked up secondhand that he loved the fit and look of, but then it ended up with an irreparable tear along the sleeve,” says Brittany. “Freeman was really born out of our attempts to improve upon and replace that beloved coat. After much work, we came up with a jacket Scott was happy with,” she continues. “We thought we were done, but then Scott’s brother requested one and we made him another. And we’ve continued to grow since then.”

At first they both kept their full-time jobs, Brittany at the ACLU of Washington, Scott as a cabinet maker at a local design-build company. They worked evenings to see Freeman Seattle expand, with a booming online store and then, in 2014, a brick-and-mortar shop in Capitol Hill, just a few miles away from the production facility. “We met a lot of other neat brands and companies that we wanted to work with, and we also thought it would be cool to meet our customers in person,” Brittany explains. “Bringing these two things together it made sense to open the store.”

By then, Scott had started a second company, custom cabinetry business Major Minor, which he still runs today. Brittany stayed at the ACLU for a few more months before transitioning to Freeman full time in 2015. Together with Scott, who works at Freeman whenever he’s not at Major Minor, the two custom-finish each coat, with either Scott or Brittany setting the snaps.

“Producing on this small scale helps us to stay involved in the process, which is what we love about our company,” says Brittany.

We at Hotel Theodore love the company as well, and we’ve stocked our suites with a pair of Freeman Seattle coats for guests to use during their stay. Learn more about our other Seattle Co-Conspirators here, and be sure to stop by Freeman Seattle’s store in Capitol Hill!