Why we use US Pima Cotton at 180 GSM — and what that actually means for your tee

You know the tee. You bought it six months ago, wore it twice a week, and now it’s thin enough to read through, the collar sags, and it hangs off you like an apology. Most t-shirts are built to be replaced, not kept. We went the other way.

Every tee we make starts from the same two decisions: US Pima Cotton, knit to 180 GSM. Those aren’t specs we picked to sound premium — they’re the difference between a tee you wear for one season and one you reach for in three years. Here’s what a 180 GSM Pima cotton t-shirt actually gives you, and why it’s the base for every piece in the 2026 World Cup collection.

What “180 GSM” actually means

GSM stands for grams per square meter — the weight of the fabric, and so its density. It’s the fastest way to judge a tee before you’ve even touched it.

Most fast-fashion tees land around 130–150 GSM. Light, cheap to ship, and see-through by the third wash. Push past 220 GSM and you’re into stiff, boxy territory that wears like a sweatshirt in July.

At 180–190 GSM, our tees sit in the sweet spot: substantial enough to drape properly and hold their shape, light enough to actually wear through a North American summer — which matters when the World Cup runs across June and July. Heavier than the disposable stuff. Cooler than a box tee. The weight you notice the moment you pick it up, and forget once it’s on.

Why Pima cotton, and why US-grown

Weight is only half the story. The other half is the fiber.

Pima is a long-staple cotton, meaning the individual fibers are noticeably longer than the standard upland cotton in most tees — roughly half again as long. Longer fibers spin into smoother, stronger yarn with fewer loose ends, and that one difference shows up in everything you actually feel:

• A softer hand, with far less of the fuzz and pilling that makes cheap cotton look tired.
• Shape that holds — it resists the stretching-out and shrinkage that wrecks the fit of regular cotton after a few cycles.
• Color that stays put, wash after wash, instead of fading to a washed-out approximation of what you bought.
• A feel that improves with age instead of thinning out.

We source ours US-grown, then knit and finish it to that 180–190 GSM spec. It costs us more than commodity cotton. We think a tee you keep for years is the cheaper purchase in the end.

The quality is insane for the price.” That’s the bar we set for every tee — and the reaction we’re built to earn.

How it wears, and how to keep it that way

A good tee should reward you for keeping it. Ours soften over the first few washes and then hold — no thinning, no sagging collar, no surprise shrink.

Treat it simply and it’ll outlast almost everything around it: wash cold, skip the high heat, hang dry or tumble low. That’s the whole routine. Long-staple US Pima Cotton does the rest.

Feel the difference for yourself

The easiest way to understand the fabric is to start with nothing on top of it. Reach for the Off the Pitch black tee — no graphics, no chest hits, just the 180 GSM US Pima Cotton doing the talking. Once you’ve felt it, the rest of the collection makes sense.

What’s the oldest tee still in your rotation — and what made it last? Tell us in the comments.