05/25/2026
TL;DR: WE ARE CLOSING.
Not a drill.
Not a cry for help, nor a rally to be saved.
Thank you all for everything.
____
We are sorry.
We vowed we would never or
(except for that one time we accidentally did) but we also didn’t want anyone upset with us for not getting the memo.
After a lot of conversations, stress, tears, spreadsheets, existential crises, and asking ourselves what life is supposed to feel like anymore…Heart will be closing its brick and mortar location in the Oregon District.
This has been the hardest decision we have had to make since we opened our doors over a decade ago.
Our city has shaped our humor, our friendships, our style, our worldview, our resilience, and the kind of business we wanted to build.
Dayton has a long history of grit, bu****it, creativity, innovation, play hard/work hard, and showing up for neighbors in hard times.
There is no version of our story that exists without Dayton, and not just downtown.
People have come to shop, laugh, vent, cry, donate, overshare, and help complete strangers from every corner and suburb of not only Dayton, but Ohio…and all over the world.
It’s way beyond anything we ever imagined possible.
It’s been a dream come true.
You all made this place feel bigger than a store.
But if the last few years have taught us anything, it’s that sometimes loving something deeply and continuing something sustainably are two different things. Love isn’t enough.
Retail has changed. Life has changed.
People have changed. We’ve changed.
You already know this, because you’ve watched beloved small businesses disappear everywhere, not just here.
Costs continue to rise. Sometimes the shipping and tariffs alone cost more than the actual product.
The world feels harder and meaner and more expensive than it used to.
Eventually there is a point where passion alone is no longer enough to financially continue something in its current form.
We cannot afford it any longer.
If we had gone into the business of manufacturing missiles, we’d be doing fantastic right now.
Instead, we spent years selling tees and trinkets, stockpiling pantry items, period products, winter gear, Narcan, pet food, school supplies, and mutual aid resources for our neighbors.
Financially?
Questionable strategy for a business.
Morally?
Would still choose it every time.
We’ve always believed in people over profit.
But, we still have bills to pay.
And at some point, the question became:
“How do we keep forcing this exact version to survive?”because honestly…we can’t.
We don’t know exactly what the future looks like yet for Heart.
There may be a smaller space. Pop-ups. Online. Somewhere new. More affordable. Some strange little hybrid version we haven’t even thought of yet.
We’re still figuring everything out in real time.
We are trying not to look at this as a failure, because we have had a good time and met so many incredible people, and that’s the point of life, we think.
But, can’t pour from an empty cup.
Girls gotta eat.
**WHEN**
We don’t know. We don’t have an exact date that we will be closing our doors.
We’ll continue to be open for business in the OD until a tenant is found, and we still have a shop full of product that just arrived.
We will keep our online store going until we close.
And we promise there will still be memes, jokes, unhinged conversations, community care, Midwest chaos, and opinionated commentary about human rights on our page.
If and wherever we end up, Heart will never become a beige farmhouse boutique.
There is no shiplap or “live, laugh, love” in our future. We will always stand on our beliefs that people deserve dignity, safety, healthcare, bodily autonomy, equality, and the freedom to exist as themselves, regardless of race, gender, sexuality, religion, birthplace, income level, or identity.
We know some people might be sad.
Obviously, same. Devastated, tbh.
We are too emotional to even fully process what this place has meant to us yet or next steps.
But we also know Heart was never really just a building on 5th Street.
It was and has always been the people inside it, and our neighbors around it.
It was all of you bringing donations during disasters.
Helping strangers.
Checking on us during hard times.
Laughing at our signs.
Sending us memes at 2 a.m.
Asking us for relationship advice and HVAC recommendations in our DMs…or where to find the best chicken wings.
Showing up for small businesses and your community over and over again, despite your own struggles.
Allowing us to be vulnerable, weird, imperfect, emotional, hopeful, cynical, compassionate, ridiculous human beings online and in real life.
You guys gave Heart a soul.
Words can never express the depth of the gratitude we have for all of you who’ve bought our tees, modeled for us, tagged us in weird things, and taken us with you all over the world.
Thank you for helping us raise hundreds of thousands of dollars over the years for local organizations putting in the work for people in need, the Oregon District Tragedy Relief fund, private citizens dealing with cancer, and losses of every kind. Showing up with food and formula to help children and families who are hungry.
Bringing us animals in dire straits because you know we can’t say no and the shelter is full.
We promise, we tried really hard for a really long time.
We are trying to look at this less like “the end” and more like an unknown, because the finality of goodbye forever is honestly too painful to stomach right now.
The only thing we know for certain is that our time at our current home is done.
Thank you for loving our city and the people in it in the most unhinged, loyal, complicated, deeply Midwestern way possible.
And we hope you’ll follow along into whatever happens next, if anything.
In the meantime, come see us at 601 E 5th st.
Eventually will be selling the fixtures, so if interested, we will have a list.
If you have some favorite tees, pop in or shop our website.
We will accept donations as long as our doors are open so we can continue to help our community.
Come see us. ❤️
If you or someone you know is looking for a great space in Dayton’s oldest neighborhood, let them know.
