Seeds Apparel in Cedar Rapids is a faith-based business that’s about more than just selling clothing. Since opening in October 2023, the business has expanded to sell homemade juices and a selection of gyros, sliders, ice cream and more. Owners Ashley and Joshua Spang opened their outdoor kitchen in May, allowing Seeds to expand […]
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From opening in October 2023The business has expanded to sell homemade juices and a selection of gyros, sliders, ice cream and more. Owners Ashley and Joshua Spang opened their outdoor kitchen in May, allowing Seeds to expand beyond just selling clothing.
Located at 812 Ellis Blvd. NW, Seeds is part of the couple’s efforts to save the neighborhood, which was hit hard by the 2008 flood. About five years ago, they began buying properties in the community and turning them into AirBnBs, with Mr. Spang using his expertise as a construction company owner to manage and renovate the buildings.
When one of their properties became available with additional space, they decided to open a store to continue their mission.
“I’ve always made T-shirts and had a vision of having T-shirts that encouraged us, and our relationship with God gave us tools to talk to each other about it,” Spang said. “And so it’s all happened so fast that we just want to be a breath of fresh air and renewal in this flood zone.”
With the support of their home church, Veritas Church of Iowa City, the Spangs were able to form a nonprofit organization and launch the website for seeds.
The name Seeds has a lot of meaning for the Spangs, especially when it comes to faith and overcoming challenges. Spang said that after a battle with mental health and addiction about eight years ago, he felt the seeds that God and others around him had planted to help him turn his life around.
“Seeds were something that was dear to me because of some personal events that were happening in my life, and just the seeds that God was planting in my heart, and the seeds that other people had planted in me, by mentoring me and training me, encouraging me,” Spang said. “And so in December, I’m going to be eight years old because of the seeds that other people have planted in my life. And I just want to be faithful to share that with other people.”
The Seeds logo also reflects this journey and what the duo wants to spread through their clothing and message.
Most of the clothing is also personally designed, Spang said. One example, a sweatshirt with a drawing of Spang’s daughter, represents the closeness of her relationship with her stepfather and with God. Another is a children’s hoodie inspired by Spang’s youngest son and his love of the biblical story of David and Goliath; each hoodie comes with a toy slingshot.
“For all of our faith-based creations, we design them ourselves, from the fabrics to the widths, the dimensions, everything,” Spang said. “Every piece comes from something that we’ve experienced or something that God said I want you to do, and I’m always praying, I’m always asking God what his people need.”
Seeds Apparel also participates in several community fundraisers each year, the most recent being a foster care backpack fundraiser in December 2023, which collected 100 backpacks filled with socks, blankets, stuffed animals, and Bibles for children in need.
Although couples' products and interests are largely based on their faith, this does not impact who is welcome at Seeds.
We just want people to feel loved, no matter who they are, what they are, what religion they are; we just want them to feel joy and love and feel comfortable when they come into our home, Spang said.
Looking ahead, the Spangs are working on a few updates adjacent to the Seeds showcase: an ice cream shack and a concrete memorial fountain.
The ice cream stand, soon to be named Spankys, will be housed in a 20-foot container on wheels so it can be transported to events. The fountain will be a place of relaxation, but also a place of remembrance for those lost to drug addiction.
“We can sit there and eat ice cream, dip our feet in the water if we want, eat a gyro; just a clean, well-lit place where people can come together and enjoy each other, to love each other,” Spang said.
Although construction on the fountain has begun, the duo still needs about $80,000 in donations to complete the project. Spang said people will be able to purchase bronze plaques outside the fountain to commemorate loved ones who have lost their lives to addiction, with the option to also include a photo or favorite phrase.
