HELP. Save Tedja.

I honestly never thought I would have to write this…

But today, I need to be completely honest with you.

The past few months have been incredibly difficult behind the scenes at Tedja.

Our big summer production was unexpectedly stopped after a series of unfortunate circumstances. Something completely outside of my control brought production to a standstill, after we had already been waiting much longer than planned.

You have all received an email about your summer pre-order and the option to either wait a little longer or cancel your order. I completely understand that many of you have chosen to cancel. You planned for your clothes to arrive months ago, and it is only fair that you have that choice.

But I also want to say something very important:

Thank you to everyone who has chosen to wait.

Thank you for being patient when the wait became much longer than any of us expected. Thank you for trusting me and Tedja, even when production couldn’t give me the delivery date I had originally promised.

And to everyone who has already placed a pre-order for our October–December deliveries: thank you. Truly.

Those orders mean so much more to me than you probably realise right now. They are helping keep Tedja moving during a time when everything behind the scenes feels incredibly uncertain.

But the reality is that the cancellations have put Tedja in a very difficult position.

Almost all of my budget is currently tied up in fabrics and production that have been sitting still. Because production has been delayed for so long, our next deliveries have also been pushed further and further back. We’ve been closing the pre-orders earlier to avoid future delays.

And that means something else happened quietly in the background:

I haven’t had enough sales to keep the business moving.

For almost three months, sales have been incredibly low. And now, on top of that, I need to refund a significant amount of money from my savings because so many summer orders have had to be cancelled.

As a small, independent brand, I simply don’t have a large company behind me to absorb this.

It’s just me.

And perhaps I should explain a little more about what that actually means.

Over the past three years, I have poured almost everything I had into rebuilding this business.

Tedja was born out of a very big personal and professional transition. I took over the brand, rebuilt it from Palaver into Tedja, invested in new branding, and built our production almost from the ground up — moving it from outside the Netherlands to Amsterdam.

And life didn’t exactly pause while I was trying to rebuild a company. My mother was battling cancer, and there were many moments where I was trying to keep a business going while also dealing with things in my personal life that were much bigger than work.

I don’t share these things very often.

Not because they didn’t affect me, but because I never wanted Tedja to be a story about everything that has gone wrong.

It cost me both financially and emotionally, but I chose to keep going.

During those years, I put the sales back into the business. I put my savings back into the business.

I haven’t paid myself a salary.

And somewhere in the middle of all of this, I also became a mother.

In the past 8 years of Tedja, I have had two beautiful daughters.

I’ve never really taken maternity leave.

There were babies who needed me, nights without enough sleep, little people growing up far too quickly — and at the same time, there was a business that needed me too.

There were moments when I had to choose between being present for my family and answering an email.

Between putting the business first or putting the business completely aside because my children needed me.

Between paying myself or putting that money back into Tedja.

Between taking a break or using those precious few hours to catch up on everything that had been waiting for me.

I know many mothers who run their own businesses will understand this feeling.

That strange guilt of never quite feeling like you’re giving enough to either side.

When you’re with your children, you’re thinking about the work you should be doing.

When you’re working, you’re thinking about the moments you’re missing at home.

And when you’re trying to build something of your own, there is rarely a clear line between work and life.

I’ve made sacrifices for Tedja that I don’t often talk about.

Not because I regret them.

But because I don’t want the story of Tedja to be about sacrifice.

I want it to be about what that sacrifice made possible.

There are two options to save Tedja:

1. Get 50% OFF and Place a pre-order for our delivery in January–February 2027. Use the code: TEDJA
2. Purchase a Gift Card and validate it in the year 2027 and get 50% OFF on any item

Because despite everything, we’ve made it eight years.

♥️ Eight years of building.

♥️ Of learning.

♥️ Of starting over.

♥️ Of figuring things out as I went.

♥️ Of making clothes slowly and intentionally.

♥️ Of building relationships with customers and makers.

♥️ Of trying to create a business that I can genuinely be proud of.

I’ve chosen local production, natural fabrics, small quantities and pre-orders because I genuinely believe there should be another way of making clothes.

⭐️ I’ve chosen to make less.
⭐️ To make slowly.
⭐️ To make things that are meant to stay in your wardrobe for years.

But trying to do that while competing with fast fashion, rising costs and everything that has happened with production has pushed me further than I ever imagined.

And now, I have reached a point where I have to make a very difficult decision.

I either have to close Tedja, or I have to try one last time to save it.

There are two options to save Tedja:

1. Get 50% OFF and Place a pre-order for our delivery in January–February 2027. Use the code: TEDJA
2. Purchase a Gift Card and validate it in the year 2027 and get 50% OFF on any item

And I want to be completely transparent with you:

The number of orders and gift card purchases we receive this month will determine whether Tedja can continue.

If we receive enough orders, I can use that money to get production moving again, pay for the fabrics that are waiting and new fabrics for future production, and keep Tedja alive.

It has been 8 years of ideas, fabrics, samples, late nights, packing orders, handwritten notes, mistakes, learning, beautiful customers, little moments and so many clothes that have found their way into your lives.

There is a real person behind every piece you buy from Tedja.

And right now, that person is asking for your help.

If you’ve ever loved something you’ve bought from Tedja, if you’ve been waiting for a piece, if you’ve been following along for years, or if you’ve simply believed in what I’m trying to create — this is the moment where your support can genuinely make a difference.

If you are able to place a pre-order for January–February 2027, you won’t just be buying a piece of clothing.

♥️ You’ll be helping me keep a small business alive.

♥️ You’ll be helping local production continue.

♥️ You’ll be helping me turn all those fabrics that are currently sitting still into clothes that can actually be worn and loved.

♥️ And most importantly, you’ll be helping me give Tedja a chance to make it through this.

There are two options to save Tedja:

1. Get 50% OFF and Place a pre-order for our delivery in January–February 2027. Use the code: TEDJA
2. Purchase a Gift Card and validate it in the year 2027 and get 50% OFF on any item

I don’t know what happens after this pre-order.

But I’m hoping, with all my heart, that we don’t have to say goodbye just yet.

And to everyone who has already supported Tedja — whether you placed an order this year, chose to wait for your summer pieces, placed an October–December pre-order, or simply shared, recommended or followed along:

thank you.

Thank you for giving a small business a chance.

Thank you for choosing something made slowly instead of something made endlessly.

Thank you for your patience, your trust and your kindness.

And thank you for being part of these 8 years.

I truly hope there will be many more.

With love,

Cylia ♥️

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✨ 50% OFF

Use the code: TEDJA

or purchase a Gift Card

Thank you for giving Tedja chance.