Before HempWeave, before the mat — there was the mission. The founder served in the United States Army, deploying overseas and living the discipline, sacrifice, and brotherhood that military service demands. That experience doesn't leave you when you take off the uniform.

Baghdad, Iraq · 2010

Kandahar, Afghanistan · 2012

Service teaches you things that are hard to explain to someone who hasn't experienced it — the weight of shared purpose, the clarity that comes from a real mission, and what it means to have people who will absolutely not let you fail. It also teaches you what you lose when that's gone.

The transition out is where a lot of veterans struggle most. Not the battlefield — the aftermath. The loss of identity, routine, and belonging that service provides. HempWeave was built with that in mind from day one.

In January 2025, Jake stepped onto the mat for the first time — not because he was looking for a new sport, but because he wanted to show his son something. He was 39. If he could do it at 39, his son could do it too. What he didn't expect was how quickly jiu-jitsu gave back what leaving the military had taken: a daily practice with something real to earn, a community that holds each other accountable, and a culture of respect built on what you can actually do.

He competed. He trained. He bought gis — cotton blends, synthetics, the standard options. And he kept asking the same question: why is nobody making these from hemp? The fiber has been used for thousands of years. It outperforms cotton in tensile strength, resists bacteria naturally, and grows without the chemical inputs that industrial cotton demands. Every manufacturer gave the same answer: "it's complicated." That answer became HempWeave.

The Revolution · Most Vicious Submission Award

The $10-per-gi donation to veteran causes isn't a marketing line. It's in HempWeave's LLC operating agreement. Every sale, at any price point, triggers it. No asterisks. If we can't sustain it, we'll say so publicly. That's a promise made on the same terms as any commitment worth keeping.