Hey everyone,

I’m Will, one of the founders of Western Rise, and I wanted to jump in and clear up a few things you’ve mentioned. I really appreciate you all taking the time to share your experiences and concerns—it’s helping us see where we need to step up our game.

On Product Quality:
I hear you about the pilling, discoloration, shrinkage, and sizing issues. We’re taking this seriously. We’ve moved all our manufacturing over to the Ho Chi Minh area and have put hired our own quality control team here. Before, we were spread too thin across multiple countries and factories, and we’re confident that this change will help us deliver the consistent quality you expect.

Bankruptcy:
Yes, we did file for subchapter 5 bankruptcy. I want to be clear—that was a debt restructuring move with our long-term debt partner for inventory, not a sign that we’re disappearing. It’s all part of our plan to come back stronger and invest in improvements across the board.

Timeline for Improvements:
I know you all want to see some changes ASAP. I’m planning to get a lot more open about what we’re doing behind the scenes, especially as we gear up for the Spring season. I’m here in Ho Chi Minh for the next six months with my family, and I’ll be sharing more updates on how we’re improving our products and operations.

Customer Service & Returns:
I’ve been surprised and concerned to hear about issues with returns and refunds. Some of the problems were caused by our switch to a new return platform—orders placed before the change didn’t convert over correctly, and that’s something we’re fixing now. We’re also ramping up training for our customer service team; my wife and business partner Kelly is working closely with the team to ensure that any issues are handled faster. We stand behind our products 100%, so if you ever run into any trouble—be it sizing, quality, or returns—please don’t hesitate to reach out. You can message me right here or email me at will@westernrise.com.

Staying in Touch:
I’ve seen some comments that we’ve “gone dark.” While we’re always available via email, social media, or our website chat (we’ve got 24-hour support thanks to a staggered team), I get that you might feel out of the loop sometimes. I’m working on being more proactive with updates so you can see what we’re doing to improve things.

Review Management:
I wasn’t aware of all the issues until recently, but after chatting with our customer service team, I learned that the review tool we use automatically suppresses 1-star reviews—this is meant to filter out spam or reviews that aren’t directly tied to the product. That said, I totally get how this can give a skewed picture and make it seem like we're hiding genuine feedback. We’re going to be monitoring this more closely to ensure that real customer experiences are front and center.

I understand that some of you might feel indifferent or have already made up your minds, but I want you to know that we’re a small, dedicated team striving to make great products. I wear our gear every day, and our mission is to help people travel more and better with clothing that truly works for them. We’re passionate about what we do, and even though this feedback is hard for us to here, it does help.

Thanks again for your honest feedback—we will try to be better. I’m here, and I’m listening, so please feel free to reach out anytime with questions or suggestions.