A HOMETOWN STORY
It’s hard to believe it's only been two years since the Daybreake Clothing Company was slinging t-shirts out of dorm halls at Sacred Heart & Long Island University, where founders Thomas Remmen & Jack Ryan attended. Remmen & Ryan began the business during their sophomore years of college with little direction and tons of passion. Since then, the company has grown tremendously, particularly throughout the 2026 calendar year where their Greek apparel business has spread to schools across the East Coast.
The company runs with the motto of having customers “style their story” with Daybreake. It's a line that's meaning extends far beyond the articles they sell. Remmen & Ryan have been adamant about keeping the business “authentic” to themselves, not pushing an agenda for the purpose of profit. What is the authenticity they refer to? In the words of Remmen simply put, “People, places, and the things about them we love the most about life”. On April 12th, 2026, the boys hosted a photoshoot at Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Connecticut, where much of this came to life.
The company's growth can’t be discussed without acknowledging the role both the university, Fairfield community and countless students, faculty & partners associated have played. Remmen attributes much of their early success to his peers' support and opportunity at doing orders for their organizations at the school. To many students it happened in the blink of an eye. Hoodies & mocknecks worn to class across campus & stickers posted up all over town. Daybreake has become integrated into the culture at the university, as many incoming students have begun to associate the brand with the school itself through the power of social media. What many don’t also know, is that a good majority of the student organizations apparel they see on campus is also a product of the company behind the scenes, manufactured through their custom apparel branch, “DBKE Originals”. I sat down with Remmen last week to get a better snapshot of the timeline of events.
In the fall of 2024, what Remmen describes as still in their “infant days”, the company began to get invited to sell at sorority events. Coming off a summer of hustle around New York City where the company was supported largely by the Breezy Point & Rockaway Beach, NY communities, expansion was inevitable. Through these events with SHU sororities, the brand grew rapidly and ideas flowed alongside. Daybreake began to retail in Ciao Bella boutique in Fairfield, CT, a staple spot for local college girls to shop in owners' Janice & Sheila’s beautiful shop. Towards the end of the Spring nearing Remmen’s graduation from the SHU, a once shot in the dark idea from Daybreake’s early days became reality; A deal with the Welch College of Business to make senior alumni hoodies. Remmen described the moment as feeling surreal, getting a check from the WCBT while still paying tuition to them, as well as how proud he felt when the items were passed to him & his peers at the annual student leader dinner prior to graduation. The moment was a glimpse into the potential of what this could become at the school.
Throughout that Spring, the company also began offering internship opportunities to students, where they took on then freshman Rochelle Mcelhinney & senior Caitlyn Kownacki. In 2026 they've taken on three more, sophomore Kaylie Luciano, senior Ariana Corrente & graduate student Theresa Tartamella. The girls assist in all aspects of the business, growing the social media pages, designing products/promotional content, and most importantly, being a source for idea to Remmen & Ryan in weekly thinktank meetings. "The students who have worked with us have been beyond amazing. Given the closeness in age and environments, all the girls have become our friends. Its really amazing to get outside perspectives on what were doing. They have all individually had a tremendous impact on this business in unique ways", said Remmen. They recently concluded their summer internship interviews, this time opening the applications up to Fairfield University students for the first time. 38 students applied, with 21 of them being interviewed by the boys. They took on four students this time around, the first three being from SHU. They are sophomore Arianna Peace, sophomore Ashley Bigilin, junior Olivia Cavallo & their first Fairfield U student intern, junior Sophia Amendo. Daybreake looks to continue taking on student interns from local Universities for as long as they can.
Fast forward almost a full year later, DBKE Originals has emerged as the newest & fastest growing Greek life supplier in the Northeast, owning licenses to over a dozen fraternal organizations and once again, partnering with seven out of eight Sacred Heart sororities to produce their apparel. The 2025-2026 school year has seen the company slingshot into the near exclusive WCBT merchandise supplier, Greek life juggernaut and “jack of all trades” apparel company for any organization who needs things and can get a hold of Remmen’s contact. Beyond the school, they’ve landed sorority deals at the University of Alabama, Ole Miss, Coastal Carolina, Quinnipiac, Long Island University & more. At SHU, over 2,500 units, thousands of customers, and dozens of partnerships later, the company gears up for the 2026-2027 school year with big aspirations.
What's next for the company at SHU? Remmen believes its potential has scratched the surface, “It still feels surreal what we’ve done at the university. There's no other place or people I'd rather do it at. I can appreciate what we’ve done while also knowing that the work has only begun at Sacred Heart and beyond.” Remmen encourages any group leader near and far to reach out. “It's still the impact we have on the organizations that makes it all worth it. We get to play a role in so many peoples stories and each one has its own unique meaning to both us and the customer. The clothes we're making aren’t changing the world but the interactions we’ve built up I strongly believe have”. Remmen, Ryan & this (not so), little company they've built has truly lived out the principals they founded it upon. I look forward to seeing the stories they come across for years to come.
