State & Liberty Clothing
State & Liberty is an American menswear brand focused on athletic-fit clothing made with stretch, performance-oriented fabrics.
Last updated August 31, 2026
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Overview
State & Liberty Clothing, commonly styled as State & Liberty or S&L, is an American menswear brand and clothing e-commerce company specializing in performance-oriented apparel for men with athletic builds. The company was founded in 2015 in Ann Arbor, Michigan, by University of Michigan friends Steven Fisher and Lee Moffie. The name refers to an intersection in Ann Arbor and reflects the founders’ connection to the city where they met through the university’s Order of Angell senior honor society. The business was created around a specific fit problem: athletic men often found that conventional off-the-rack dress shirts fit loosely through the torso while remaining restrictive across the chest, shoulders, and arms. Fisher and Moffie sought to develop garments that followed a more pronounced V-shaped physique while retaining a polished appearance suitable for work, formal events, and business-casual settings. Their development process involved testing hundreds of fabrics and shirt patterns on professional hockey players, a group whose physiques helped define the brand’s intended customer profile. The resulting product concept combined a close athletic cut with stretch and technical performance characteristics. State & Liberty’s signature dress shirts use its Pro Performance Fabric, described as a lightweight blend of 92% polyester and 8% Spandex. The material is designed to provide substantial stretch, moisture management, and wrinkle resistance, positioning the shirts as an alternative to traditional pure-cotton dress shirts. The approach reflects the wider influence of athleisure and performance apparel on menswear, including the use of synthetic fibers in garments traditionally associated with formal clothing. State & Liberty began as a fully self-funded small business and initially concentrated on online sales. It subsequently broadened its assortment beyond dress shirts into polos, long-sleeve polos, overcoats, and other athletic-fit menswear. In October 2016, the company announced a partnership with the Professional Hockey Players’ Association. In 2017, it expanded its product range and tested physical retail through pop-up locations on Boston’s Newbury Street and in Georgetown, Washington, D.C. The company has developed a retail presence alongside its e-commerce operations. The referenced company description states that State & Liberty operates more than 30 retail stores in the United States and one store in Canada. Its retail and product strategy centers on fit specialization rather than broad demographic positioning: the brand presents itself as a solution for men who want tailored-looking clothing with the mobility and comfort associated with athletic apparel. State & Liberty has also connected selected products with charitable fundraising. The brand supported Autism Speaks through a campaign associated with NHL player James van Riemsdyk, donating a portion of proceeds to the organization. In 2016, it introduced The Morgan shirt to benefit the Jordan Morgan Foundation and later introduced The Matzka dress shirt to support Scott Matzka and raise money for ALS research. These initiatives added philanthropic purposes to specific product launches while remaining consistent with the company’s connections to athletic and hockey communities. The founders continue to be identified as the company’s joint chief executives in the available reference material. Moffie brought experience as a former professional ice hockey player after playing college hockey for the Michigan Wolverines and later for the Denver Cutthroats and South Carolina Stingrays. Fisher’s background includes business data analytics, complex systems, consulting, and a data analytics initiative for the Detroit Tigers. State & Liberty remains a privately held American apparel business; detailed ownership, financial, and public-market information is not established in the supplied reference material.
History
State & Liberty was established in 2015 in Ann Arbor, Michigan, by Steven Fisher and Lee Moffie, friends from the University of Michigan. They met through Order of Angell, a university senior honor society, and named the company after an Ann Arbor intersection. The founders identified a gap in traditional menswear: standard dress shirts often did not fit men with muscular shoulders, chests, and arms without becoming excessively loose around the waist. Moffie’s experience as a collegiate and professional hockey player helped define the target customer and provided a practical testing environment. Before founding the company, he played four years of varsity hockey for the Michigan Wolverines under coach Red Berenson from 2009 to 2013, followed by professional hockey with the Denver Cutthroats and South Carolina Stingrays. Fisher contributed experience in business analytics and complex systems, including work on a data analytics initiative for the Detroit Tigers and consulting assignments for startups and larger organizations. The founders developed the company as a self-funded business. Influenced by the growth of athleisure and performance apparel, they experimented with numerous fabrics and shirt patterns on professional hockey players. Their objective was to preserve the appearance of conventional dress clothing while adding the mobility and comfort associated with technical sportswear. This process produced the brand’s athletic-fit dress shirts and its Athletic Performance Fabric, also described as Pro Performance Fabric. The cited composition is 92% polyester and 8% Spandex, with characteristics including light weight, stretch, moisture management, and wrinkle resistance. The initial assortment centered on dress shirts, but the company expanded into other menswear categories. In 2016, it formed a partnership with the Professional Hockey Players’ Association. The following year, State & Liberty introduced polo shirts, long-sleeve polo shirts, and an overcoat. It also experimented with brick-and-mortar retail by opening pop-up locations on Boston’s Newbury Street and in Georgetown, Washington, D.C. Philanthropy became part of selected product activity. The company supported Autism Speaks through an initiative associated with NHL player James van Riemsdyk, with part of proceeds directed to the organization. In 2016, it launched The Morgan shirt to benefit the Jordan Morgan Foundation and later launched The Matzka dress shirt in support of Scott Matzka and ALS research. State & Liberty developed from an online-first operation into a hybrid e-commerce and retail business. The available reference states that it operates more than 30 stores in the United States and one in Canada. Its core differentiation remains athletic fit: rather than treating stretch fabric only as a comfort feature, the brand uses fabric engineering and body-specific patterning as the foundation of its menswear proposition. Fisher and Moffie are identified as joint chief executives in the available material. Ownership, revenue, financing, and current store-by-store operating details are not specified by the supplied sources.
- 2017
Product and pop-up retail expansion
[1]State & Liberty added polos, long-sleeve polos, and an overcoat, and opened pop-up locations in Boston and Washington, D.C.
- 2016
Professional Hockey Players’ Association partnership
[1]State & Liberty launched a partnership with the Professional Hockey Players’ Association.
- 2016
The Morgan charitable shirt launched
[1]The company introduced The Morgan shirt to benefit the Jordan Morgan Foundation.
- 2016
The Matzka charitable shirt launched
[1]The Matzka dress shirt was launched in support of Scott Matzka and ALS research.
- 2015
Company founded in Ann Arbor
[1]Steven Fisher and Lee Moffie founded State & Liberty in Ann Arbor, Michigan, to develop better-fitting performance menswear for athletic men.
Products and positioning
Menswear for athletic builds, combining tailored silhouettes with stretch, moisture-wicking, wrinkle-resistant, and lightweight performance fabrics.
Dress shirts · 2015
Pro Performance Fabric dress shirts
The brand’s signature dress shirts are cut for athletic physiques and use a reported 92% polyester and 8% Spandex performance blend. The fabric is lightweight, highly stretchable, moisture-wicking, and wrinkle-resistant, combining a more formal shirt appearance with properties associated with sportswear.
Casual menswear · 2017
Polo shirts
State & Liberty expanded beyond formal shirts with polos designed around the same athletic-fit concept. The available reference identifies the category as part of the company’s 2017 product expansion, but does not provide detailed fabric, color, or construction information.
Casual menswear · 2017
Long-sleeve polo shirts
The long-sleeve polo extended the brand’s athletic-fit approach into a more seasonally versatile casual shirt. It was among the products introduced during State & Liberty’s 2017 assortment expansion.
Outerwear · 2017
Overcoat
An overcoat was added to broaden State & Liberty’s offering beyond shirts and polos. The supplied source confirms the product’s introduction in 2017 but does not specify its fabric, construction, or design details.
Charitable apparel · 2016
The Morgan shirt
The Morgan was a named shirt launched in 2016 to benefit the Jordan Morgan Foundation. The available material does not provide additional specifications about the garment or the exact donation structure.
Charitable apparel · 2016
The Matzka dress shirt
The Matzka dress shirt was introduced in 2016 in support of Scott Matzka and to raise money for ALS research. Further product specifications and campaign totals are not stated in the supplied reference.
Marketing campaigns
- 2016Autism Speaks support
United States
State & Liberty supported Autism Speaks through an initiative associated with NHL player James van Riemsdyk, donating a portion of proceeds to the organization.
Outcome. The available source confirms the charitable support but does not report proceeds or other quantified results.
- 2016The Morgan shirt
United States
The company launched The Morgan shirt to benefit the Jordan Morgan Foundation.
Outcome. No fundraising total or subsequent campaign outcome is provided.
- 2016The Matzka shirt
United States
State & Liberty launched The Matzka dress shirt in support of Scott Matzka and to raise funds for ALS research.
Outcome. The available source does not disclose the amount raised or other measurable results.
Brand decisions
2017
Move from online-first sales toward physical retailStrategyBackground
After beginning as a clothing e-commerce company, State & Liberty sought additional customer-facing retail channels.
Action taken
The company opened pop-up locations on Newbury Street in Boston and in Georgetown, Washington, D.C.
Aftermath
The company subsequently developed a broader retail presence; the available reference describes more than 30 U.S. stores and one Canadian store.
2015
Focus on athletic-fit performance menswearStrategyBackground
The founders identified a mismatch between conventional off-the-rack dress shirts and the proportions of athletic men.
Action taken
They developed athletic-fit shirts using stretch performance fabrics and tested patterns on professional hockey players.
Aftermath
The athletic-fit, performance-fabric proposition became the foundation of the brand’s product range and retail positioning.
Recent events
- 2017
State & Liberty expands product range and opens Boston and Washington pop-ups[1]
Product launch
The company introduced additional apparel, including polo shirts, long-sleeve polos, and an overcoat, while opening temporary retail locations on Newbury Street in Boston and in Georgetown in Washington, D.C.
- 2016
State & Liberty launches partnership with the Professional Hockey Players’ Association[1]
Other
The athletic-fit menswear company entered a partnership with the Professional Hockey Players’ Association, reinforcing its relationship with hockey and with the athletic body types central to its product development.
Sources1 sources
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