No 231 FINDING COMFORT IN THEIR OWN SKIN
Sartorial frustration—and some encouragement from her wife, Naomi Gonzalez—drove Fran Dunaway to launch a clothing line for women with a masculine streak. But when the couple noticed that it was boxer briefs—not button-up shirts—that were flying off the shelves, they realized they had found their hero.
Fran Dunaway and Naomi Gonzalez → TOMBOYX
Three-year growth 2,049% • 2017 revenue $5.4 million
SEATTLE • FOUNDED 2012
FRAN: I wanted a cool button-up shirt, like a Ben Sherman or Robert Graham, and I couldn’t find it.
NAOMI: I encouraged her to start the business because, well, she was complaining so much.
FRAN: Neither of us was looking for a new job—I was an executive producer for a political media strategy firm,
