Hello WORLD! Here is a brief introduction to our beginnings and the story of our very first charity challenge where we have raised (so far) a whopping £829 for the wonderful charity, GuildCare, who assist and care for people with Learning Difficulties.
My name is Ben (on the right) and I am the Founder of our community, well-being-orientated clothing brand - Whiyou.
Today (2nd of April) Whiyou officially opened its doors to the world, and WOW, what a journey this has been, in so many challenging and rewarding ways.
I began building the Whiyou concept over a year ago now, with ZERO(!!!) experience in building a company. I had an idea, a direction, the drive, and no clue how to start. I will save this story for another day.
Whiyou is a GIVE BACK brand, which searches for different ways to HELP people resolve and tackle their inner demons. For the first phase of our journey, we are crafting fashion as a tool to help us achieve this... Fashion & Mental Health? Aye...? There is a method to our approach.
Negative Mental Health sits at the top and is the result of a bundle of social-impact issues we all face day to day. What helps? Well, there are loads of different ways, and that is the beauty of life. I found that when I could comfortably, and often uncomfortable talk about my demons, people responded. People helped me, people then opened up about their struggles and their passions. Together we grew and understood our agendas and gravitated towards each other, with a helping, caring attitude, and this is where Whiyou lives. Sparking conversations and being the signal and prompt for open discussion with others, to help ourselves and others.
When I wear my "ARE YOU OKAY" Hoodie, people stop, they look, they reflect, and they talk. It might not be with me, but, it may be with someone they know...The ripple effects we don't see are sometimes the most powerful.
Not only will we assist in encouraging communities of people to talk, and break down taboos, we will play a key role in financially supporting non-profit organisations (social enterprises) to further their reach and expand the crucial awareness that is needed.
"We are joining the band of GREAT companies, doing GREAT things!"
We have recently completed the first of many charity challenges...and oh boy(!) did we severely underestimate this challenge. Me and my best buddy Nath (Left in the above photo) decided it was a great idea to hike along the coast, from Rye, East Sussex, to the East Beach Cafe, Littlehampton, West Sussex...Just a casual Sunday afternoon 78.4-mile trek, right?
Day 1: Rye, East Sussex to Normans Bay, Bexhill
A mere 26 miles with the notorious hills of Hastings, AKA, the Fire Hills, which we assumed (wrongly) would be the very worst of the journey. Incredibly, we ACHIEVED our £500 target for GuildCare. Time to go home? That would have been the sensible option now looking back. But we set ourselves a challenge and this was the beginning of our pledge to pour our blood, sweat and tears (literally) into Whiyou's commitment to GIVE BACK to communities.
Day 2: We awoke in our little tent to rain! RAIN!!! Blisters on our feet and a sleepless night with more injuries, aches and pains than when we went to sleep.
A quick bit of advice: Get a decent tent and a decent blow-up bed...But one which doesn't take up too much room. Oh! I almost forgot. By this stage we had picked up our 30KG bags with all our gear for the next couple of days...Spoiler alert...Rain and heavy bags are a bad combo...Oh...and waterproofs that aren't so waterproof...Get very good waterproofs!
Everything along the Bexhill coast to Eastbourne was lovely and flat...
The calm before the storm.
Beachy Head and the SEVEN SISTERs...
...of doom
It hurts just looking at this image. We were now at mile 30-something, and this...was BRUTAL! Now, disclaimer, we are not avid hikers in the slightest, and this marked the realistic eye-opener to our journey, and how insane this idea actually was.
..But it's all for a good cause, it's all for a good cause, it's all for a good cause.
Now, to make matters more interesting, I began to feel a stabbing pain above my left knee every time my left leg had a downward weight put on it. Did I mention it began pouring with rain too?
Well...We were well into a journey by now, and absolutely pumped and running on our commitment and this journey! No pain, no gain! The Seven Sisters, Eastbourne, are STUNNING! I highly recommend a day out here.
Below is where they filmed the latest Netflix series - 3 Body Problem. I can confirm the luxury house they are staying in doesn't exist! Or it sank into the mores. A cheeky bit of production editing.
The end of the Seven Sisters!
Ohhhh no! A sneaky 8th sister is hiding straight in front and by far was one of the steepest and longest inclines so far...
You'd be right in thinking, "Super, we hug the coast and get straight over to the next cliff..." Nope. There is a body of water in between. You can just about see it glistening in the centre right of the photo. We could have swam across and been no wetter than we currently were...But alas, we did not.
This heartbreaking detour took us 2 miles back into the mainland...In the now pouring rain and along the muddiest track so far. With soaking wet clothes, bags now an extra 10 kg heavier, mud...everywhere, we thought this was too grim, right...Nope! To our relief and amazement, there is a perfectly placed country pub at the end, our saviour and saving grace!
We swan-dived straight in, where we found a warm welcome, a fireplace to dry our clothes off and a changing room to replace our sodden clothes. If it weren't for this place, we'd have been in a very, very poor predicament. We tried Googling it to leave a positive review, but, it doesn't exist! It was a ghost pub, or an angel pub, or something out of Harry Potter...The pub of requirements.
By now, we were as dry as can be. It was about 6pm, getting dark, and raining harder, and we still intended to get to Brighton and for a well-needed stay in a Travel Lodge.
However...We were VERY behind on our time now and had another 16 or so miles to go...
We trudged on and on and on, up and up and up, and down, and down and down.
Madness had set in by now. "I can see the Brighton Pier" states Nathan...For reference, we have made it up the 8th Seven Sisters and were scrambling along the top of a cliff with the huge decline to come and Seaford, Newhaven, and Peacehaven between us and then Brighton...
Turns out it was a cliffside viewing platform Nathan had seen...Not Brighton Pier...Wishful thinking and delirium had set in.
The descent into Seaford was by far the most dangerous of all the tracks. By now my knee was in agony, and now after every step, our new waterproofs were failing once again. The ground was as slippy as a fish. Now just imagine that for a moment, walking down the side of a slippery wet fish...That was exactly what it was like.
It's now 8:30pm-ish, pitch black, and gushing with rain, we are wet, cold, and in severe pain.
We trudged along the long flat Seaford coast with 12 miles still to go and looked at yet another(!!) cliff in between us, Newhaven, Peacehaven and Brighton still to go. With barely any food in our stomachs, and feeling downright beaten, I began to feel sick, and dizzy and my heart was palpitating at a noticeable level...This is where it is important to recognise your limits and put your health and safety first.
It was at this moment that I made the decision...We end our day here, get a train to Brighton and pick up where we left off on the following day.
An hour later, (witnessing someone walk off a train too quickly and leaving their friends behind by accident, which was mildly humorous) we arrived in Brighton for our late check-in.
Limping, wet, cold and miserable... (sarcastically said) Luckily we only had another 8 hours till we had to be on our way again...Our blister plasters were now superglued to our feet and had become a tangled jellyfish mess stuck to our toes.
2 hours with a hairdryer...drying our clothes, and some well-needed food, and we were off like a lamp, with intervals of heavy snoring from the both of us, it was the best sleep ever!
T-minus 6 hours till we have to be up again.
Day 1 & 2 was over. 1 more to go.
The finale: day 3
We woke in glory, magnificence, feeling wonderful! - Oh wait...That was madness, delirium and wishful thinking once again.
The truth was, we couldn't walk on our feet because they were coated in blisters and in all the important places that allowed us to walk, and, my knee was AGONY.
I made the next difficult and crucial decision. We embark from Brighton and we do not head back 12 miles to start where we left off. Otherwise, day 3 was going to be a 31-mile track and in the state, we were in, we were only going to get worse...If we had headed back the 12 miles we missed, we may not have made it to the finish.
Spoiler alert: It was the right choice! Our health has to come first, and so far we had not only achieved our fundraising target but also incredible awareness around people with Learning Difficulties. Thank you to everyone!!!
So we went on, with 19 miles of limping to go, along the Brighton, Hove, Worthing and Littlehampton coasts. We had glorious weather on our side, until 1pm to 2pm when it lashed it down once again...But this time we were far more prepared and luckily it was only a short burst. So I won't grumble too much at this one.
Dun, Dunn, Dunnn. Lo and behold - My decision to start at Brighton was the right one.
6 miles to finish and my knee completely buckles. AGONY!
I sit here typing this Whiyou intro and charity challenge story in a knee brace with very little easy movement. This challenge took place 6 days ago! I am currently waiting for the swelling to go down to get an MRI scan...Worth it? ABSOLUTELY!
This was a challenge of perseverance, with each step, ache, and pain for those who face a lifetime of struggles. This was our Battles Won, Struggles Overcome Challenge and we represented everyone who has to deal with struggles in day-to-day life.
Together, brothers in arms, we hopped over the finish line!!!!!
Despite facing severe aches, pains, and an early knee issue that turned into an injury, we powered through for those who we support, and who supported us:
109.8 kilometres walked
29 hours and 44 minutes of continuous movement
5,985 feet climbed & 5,985 declined
A whopping 129,841 steps taken
THE END of our hike and the beginning of our journey
Thank you to everyone who encouraged us to keep going and helped us SMASH our target. You, GuildCare and everyone facing challenges are the true champions!
It's not too late to donate. Our Just Giving page will remain open until Sunday 21st of April.
You can find the donation page via the Menu: Usually under "More", find the Hi-Five Club and you'll see the challenge donation button.
Or follow the button below.
We wish to thank:
Marc and the GuildCare Team
Our Supporters (as of the 2nd April)
Amy
Toni J
Kim (ship)
Charlotte F
Anonymous x3
Liz & Geoff T
Katherine
Cheryl
Zara and Family
Jennifer
Julie (My Mum)
Jelv
Andy J
Auntie Miche & Terry
Karen L
Di C
Phil B
Linda K
Hannah K
Penny
George S
Brian Hazell & Partners
Nat W
Cat R
Peter
Stu
Di
Sophie L
Bev H
Will
Jason P
The social enterprises on board with us so far and receiving 10% of our proceeds:
GuildCare - Charity, Worthing (Learning Difficulties)
Suicide Prevention UK - Charity, Bristol (Mental Health)
Turning Heads - Community Interest Company, Torquay (Learning Difficulties)
With Grace - Non-profit organisation, East Sussex (Mental Health)
This giant step marks the beginning of our journey. At Whiyou we will undergo 2 - 3 major charity challenges each year on behalf of those who need it, and will always strive to raise awareness for social impact issues and people.
We believe that fashion can be a powerful conversation starter. Our vision? To empower people to talk openly about the things that matter most. Through our statement-making designs, we're raising awareness around 11 hard-to-talk-about issues.
Suicide Prevention & Mental Health Awareness
Animal Welfare
Ocean Cleanliness
Domestic Abuse
Learning Difficulties
Preserve the Natural World
Victims of War & Crime
Substance Abuse
Sexual Harm
Youth Support
Feed the Hungry
Explore the range, find your cause, and a design that resonates with you, and let's
spark those conversations together!
Here's what you need to know about Whiyou:
We're proud to collaborate with four incredible non-profit social enterprises so far. For every purchase you make, 10% of the proceeds go directly to these non-profit organisations. It's our stamp on crafting fashion with a purpose!
As a special thank you to our account holders, we're offering a FREE lifetime entry ticket PER PURCHASE. Imagine having a chance to win an exciting prize every December 1st!
Our slogan is simple: GIVE BACK. We're committed to prioritising people's well-being and doing more for our community. Together, we will make a real difference!
All our garments are organic cotton unisex fits because great fashion knows no boundaries.
Whether it's a T-shirt, sweater, or hoodie, everyone is welcome!
~ Ben Hunter, Founder of Whiyou
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