Saltwater Boys

Saltwater Boys didn’t start in a boardroom or with a business plan, it started with a frustrated mom and a $200 heat press. Today, the brand is sold in hundreds of stores, runs multiple retail locations, and is scaling its DTC and wholesale channels. But like many fast-growing businesses, access to working capital became the critical factor separating opportunity from limitation.

This is the story of how Wayflyer helped Saltwater Boys turn early traction into lasting momentum.

The Problem: A Brand Born Overnight, But Cash Flow Couldn’t Keep Up

Lacey Hewitt launched Saltwater Boys while on maternity leave from her job as a nurse. Tired of not finding good-quality clothes for her two sons, she started sourcing blanks and screen-printing them herself, selling through Facebook mom groups.

Their first launch was a crab-printed T-shirt. In month one, it brought in $17,000. In month two, they repeated the result. By month three, the brand exploded. At a time when COVID had halted overseas supply chains, Saltwater Boys was uniquely positioned. Lacey had been sourcing from Georgia, and local retailers struggling to get inventory, came knocking.

Within six months, the brand picked up 30 wholesale accounts. Soon after, it was nearly 100% wholesale, with nearly 300 retail partners across the U.S. But while the demand was there, keeping up with production was financially exhausting.

“Wholesale is literally a cash-eating animal,” Lacey explained. “You need a lot of money to grow, and traditional banks just don’t understand apparel.”

Without outside investors, and with big deposits due to their manufacturer in Peru, Saltwater Boys needed a financing partner that understood their business model and moved as fast as they did.

The Solution: Flexible Financing for a Brand That Moves Fast

That’s where Wayflyer came in.

By providing flexible working capital tailored to the rhythms of retail and DTC growth, Wayflyer enabled Saltwater Boys to maintain momentum without giving up equity or waiting weeks for approval.

“Wayflyer has been instrumental when we’ve needed to place these large deposits,” said Lacey. “It ties up your money for four months. That’s crucial working capital you don’t have access to. As long as the growth is there, the money keeps coming. In my experience, you get more and more and more.”

Unlike banks, Wayflyer understood the seasonality and complexity of apparel. More importantly, they moved quickly and scaled funding as the business scaled.

The Results: 300+ Retailers, Two Stores, and a Soaring DTC Channel

Today, Saltwater Boys is thriving.

They’ve gone from a single Facebook shirt drop to a brand with over 300 retail partners nationwide. They’ve expanded their DTC channel with the help of digital ad agencies, and they’ve opened a second retail store in St. Simons Island, Georgia - a location that draws over 3 million tourists a year.

And they’ve done it all without raising outside investment.

Wayflyer has helped power this expansion, bridging the gap between placing large production orders and turning that inventory into revenue. The partnership gives Saltwater Boys the confidence and cash flow to pursue every growth opportunity, from wholesale expansion to DTC marketing and physical retail.

Saltwater Boys is proof that big businesses can start from small ideas, and grow fast when backed by the right partner. For founders juggling wholesale complexity, retail expansion, and DTC marketing, access to flexible capital can be the difference between stalled growth and sustained scale.

With Wayflyer, Saltwater Boys found more than just financing. They found a long-term partner that understood their vision and helped them move faster toward it.