Seeds Apparel in Cedar Rapids is a faith-based business that dabbles in more than just clothing. Since opening in October 2023, the company has grown to sell homemade juices, and a selection of gyros, sliders, ice cream, and more. Owners Ashley and Joshua Spang opened their outdoor kitchen in May, which enabled Seeds to expand […]
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Since opening in October 2023, the company has grown to sell homemade juices, and a selection of gyros, sliders, ice cream, and more. Owners Ashley and Joshua Spang opened their outdoor kitchen in May, which enabled Seeds to expand beyond solely apparel.
Located at 812 Ellis Blvd. N.W., Seeds is part of the couple’s effort to “redeem” the neighborhood, which was heavily affected by the 2008 flood. About five years ago, they began to buy properties in the community and turn them into AirBnBs, with Mr. Spang using his expertise as a construction business owner to manage and renovate buildings.
When one of their properties came with extra space, they decided to open a storefront to further their mission.
“I had always been doing T-shirts and had a vision of having T-shirts that encouraged us, and our relationship with God gave us tools to talk to one another about it,” Mr. Spang said. “And so it all happened so quickly … we just want to be a breath of fresh air and renewal in this flood zone area.”
With backing from their home church, Veritas Church of Iowa City, the Spangs were able to start a nonprofit and launch the website for Seeds.
The name “Seeds” holds a lot of meaning for the Spangs, particularly as it relates to faith and overcoming hardship. Mr. Spang said that after a battle with mental health and substance abuse about eight years ago, he felt the “seeds” that God and others around him had planted to help him alter his life.
“‘Seeds’ was something that was near and dear to me through some personal things that were happening in my life, and just the seeds that God was planting in my heart, and the seeds that other people had planted inside of me, mentoring me and discipling me, encouraging me,” Mr. Spang said. “And so, in December, I’ll get eight years thanks to the seeds that other people have planted in my life. And I just want to be faithful to share that with other people.”
The logo for Seeds also reflects this journey, and what the duo aims to spread through their clothing and message.
Much of the clothing design is equally personal, Ms. Spang said. One example, a sweatshirt with a design drawn by Ms. Spang’s daughter, represents the closeness of her relationship with both her stepfather and with God. Another is a child’s hoodie design inspired by the Spangs’ youngest son and his love for the biblical David and Goliath story; each hoodie is sold with a slingshot toy.
“With all of our faith-based stuff, we design on our own completely, like from fabrics to widths, dimensions, everything,” Ms. Spang said. “Each piece stems from something that we’ve either been through or something that God said ‘I want you to do,’ and I always pray, I always ask God what his people need.”
Seeds Apparel also participates in several community fundraisers every year, the most recent being a foster care backpack fundraiser in December 2023, which gathered 100 backpacks with socks, blankets, stuffed animals, and children’s Bibles for kids in need.
Although the couple’s merchandise and focus are largely based on their faith, it doesn’t impact who is welcome at Seeds.
“We just want people to feel loved regardless of who they are, what they are, what religion they are; we just want them to feel joy and love and comfortable walking in,” Ms. Spang said.
Looking to the future, the Spangs are working on a few updates adjacent to the Seeds storefront: an ice cream shack and a concrete seated remembrance fountain.
The ice cream shack, soon-to-be-dubbed “Spanky’s,” will be opened out of a 20-foot shipping container on wheels so it can be transported to events. The fountain will be a place to relax, but also a place to memorialize those who have been lost to substance abuse.
“We can sit there and have an ice cream treat, dip your feet in the water if you want, have a gyro; just a clean, well-lit place for people to gather and enjoy one another, to love one another,” Mr. Spang said.
Although they have begun construction on the fountain, the duo still needs about $80,000 in donations to complete the project. Ms. Spang noted that people will be able to purchase bronze plaques on the outside of the fountain to memorialize any loved ones who have been lost to addiction, with options to include a photo or favorite phrase as well.
