Teespring closes Davol Square office in Providence

PROVIDENCE – Teespring has closed its Davol Square office, marking the last phase of a restructuring that began over the summer, a company spokeswoman said Monday.
“This is the last phase of our consolidation that started last June, as we complete the co-location of teams in San Francisco, Kentucky, London and our new Seattle office. It’s also part of our effort to aggressively grow investments in engineering, marketing and manufacturing which are located across those offices,” Teespring spokeswoman Michelle Cox said in a statement.
Last June, the San Francisco-based company, which is a custom apparel-making platform founded by Brown University graduates, said it would move its customer service operation from Davol Square to its new Kentucky production facility, resulting in the loss of 70 jobs here.
The company said that the decision to close the Providence office was made so that it could concentrate on areas that represent growth opportunities for the company – engineering, marketing and manufacturing.
Teespring’s workforce totals approximately 300. The spokeswoman said those affected by the Providence closing represent less than 10 percent of the total workforce, but was unable to provide specific numbers. Some employees were transferred to other offices, and others also will work remotely from Providence, but specifics were not released.
The company told its Providence employees of the plan to close the office shortly after the first of the year.
Brown graduates Walker Williams and Evan Stites-Clayton founded Teespring in 2012 after an effort to save a Providence bar grew into an online crowdfunding platform that allows people to design and sell their own T-shirts. Backed by Andreessen Horowitz, Khosla Ventures and Y Combinator, the startup has raised more than $50 million in funding.

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  1. Is this what the start-up culture looks like in RI? Businesses stay for a few years and then leave? Why would young and innovative talent want to stay in Providence when they have the opportunity to move to SF? Millennials are leaving the Ocean State in droves, and no one seems concerned. Next major Providence-based start-up to leave will be Splitwise. Heed my warning.