Our Story

We’re like most of you in that we have to dig deep to find the courage to move forward with our dreams, to follow where Spirit leads. The journey we are on now seems so different from what we imagined when we first met at college. We imagined we would graduate from a well-respected business school, get hired by a major company with high-paying jobs and then live happily ever after. As it turned out, we did achieve those career goals, but somehow things just didn’t align with our expectations and we didn’t feel happily ever after. Eventually, we decided it was time to make some changes, so we left our jobs and embarked on a new venture where we could work together. It was during this time that the idea for Lil Love came.

The year was 2010 and we were in church listening to a message, when the entire concept for the brand, including the name ‘Lil Love’, came to Logan in what seemed like an instant. The concept was to use apparel to deliver messages with meaning that could possibly help someone to change their perspective, to see things in a more hopeful and positive way. At first, we just ignored the notion since it wasn’t something we had ever thought about doing, plus we were comfortable in our existing business. However, as time went on, the urging we felt to create Lil Love intensified to the point where we knew we had to take steps to start the brand. Our feeling is that it was Spirit pulling us in that direction, and as uncertain as that path was, we felt we needed to do our best to follow it and to lead by example. We had been mentoring high school and college age individuals for many years and we often stressed the significance and importance of listening to and then following where Spirit leads, regardless of how unclear that path seems, so we felt we had to pursue where we were being led and not allow our fears and doubts to hold us back.

We began by looking deep within, objectively evaluating the adversity we had faced over the years and how we learned to cope with it, grow stronger because of it, and remain positive and hopeful despite it. Getting there was a journey of gaining insight by digging into the Bible and growing our relationship with God along with diving into works from many great authors who have made it their life’s work to help others grow emotionally and spiritually. We took some of the key concepts that helped us the most and created themes from them, such as “Conquer Your Mind” and “60-365”. Each theme has a message of hope and positivity behind it and our shirts are a way for us to spread these messages to others. But our journey still goes on as the emotional struggles will always be there. So we continue to strengthen our connection to God and gain more insight from resources in order to remain triumphant over the adversity and share our experiences from it.

We also felt Spirit leading us towards establishing a mission for the brand to provide financial support to athletes who participate in action sports. These athletes are just as dedicated to their sport as are others who participate in more traditional sports, but are often left behind as a result of inadequate funds. We began this mission by sponsoring a few individuals who participate in the Olympic sport of BMX racing and in the sport of motocross, and it is our goal to support athletes in many other types of action sports in the near future.

We created the first Lil Love shirt in 2011, and given our link to the BMX racing community, we launched the brand at a national BMX race that year. Not long after, Lil Love caught the attention of Olympian and 3-time elite pro World Champion BMX racer Kyle Bennett. Kyle chose to endorse Lil Love because he believed in what the brand was about and said “that’s what we all need to do as much as we can is just give a Lil more Love.” Kyle designed a shirt for Lil Love, the KB Slant, and after that we developed a theme for him, KB88 Believe, that reflected what he felt strongly about and what he had learned during his professional racing career. Shortly after creating the KB88 Believe shirt, and the video where he talks about it, the world lost Kyle due to a tragic car accident. Kyle was truly one of the most humble individuals we have ever known and we believe his humbleness was due to his belief and personal mission that he could best represent God through his actions alone. No doubt as a result of his character, Kyle remains one of the most loved pro BMX racers in history and we are honored that he chose to be a part of our mission.

Although Lil Love and KB88 Believe are well known both in the U.S. and abroad within the BMX racing community, it wasn’t until late 2015 that we launched a new online store and campaign to bring awareness of the brand to the mainstream public that it was created for. When we ask ourselves… Who exactly is Lil Love? We feel you are. Without you and many others like you, there can be no forward movement. We start the process by creating the themes and sharing them with you using a unique design on premium apparel. But we hope it doesn’t stop there. Our hope is that each of you will share the message with others.

We feel Lil Love is the creation of Spirit, a creation that is meant to bring many of us together to shine a light of positivity and hope in today’s world. Even if we each carry just a small light, together we can make a noticeable and positive impact. It’s our hope that Lil Love will not only be a journey for us, but for you also. 

Live with meaning! 

Logan and Erica Crawford
Co-founders, Lil Love Apparel