Saying goodbye to the Flagship

And why I am extremely bummed out (but optimistic about what's ahead!)

Jul 09, 2025

Me and Lottie, summer 2024 in Brooklyn | Chelsey Werth, Photo

Hey Geezers,

Some hard news to share: Flagship, the startup I used to launch my store of recs, is shutting down next week.

Not just my store. The entire platform is closing. And I’m really, really sad about it.

I’m sad because we built something so special there — a clean, curated, beautiful little corner of the internet where you could shop so many products I’ve recommended, worn, gifted, loved, and shouted about. Products the community loved. Small businesses like Maya and Borough Home and Captain Blankenship and Chappywrap and Hyer Goods. It made me proud every time someone said, “I bought this and loved it! I trust what’s in your Flagship.”

That meant everything to me.

I’m also disappointed! This is a loss of something that was actually working for our community. And I want to be super clear: this has everything to do with Flagship and nothing to do with Gee Thanks! We were a runaway success on the platform. You showed up. You shopped. You supported small businesses and emerging brands. You told your friends. You built a reputation for being thoughtful, fun, generous shoppers, and the brands loved meeting you and earning your trust as their customers.

That’s something I’ll always be proud of.

And I get it! Startups are hard. Trying to do something new and better in a space ruled by massive corporations is no small thing. I have deep empathy for how difficult it is to build a company from scratch. I’m still so grateful we got to be a part of what Flagship was trying to do. It gave us a home that felt aligned with our values, and I’m going to miss it so much.

So… what now?

Don’t worry. Gee Thanks! is not going anywhere. You’ll still be able to shop the things I love, but it won’t live in one tidy storefront anymore (for now, anyway). I’m working on new ways to share everything: newsletter roundups, a dedicated page, more content on social — it’s all in the works.

And no, we’re not going back to Amazon.

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Look, Amazon is necessary sometimes. It’s convenient. It gets the job done. But it’s just not fun. There’s no joy in it. There’s no discovery. It’s not where we found each other. The Gee Thanks! community has been so much more delightful, human, and intentional without it — and that’s something I never want to lose. Not to mention the mutual aid fundraising we’ve been able to do together.

So while I’m sad to lose Flagship, I’m excited to find out what comes next. This is a pivot, and not at all a pause. You’ll still get the recs, the restocks, the sales, and the “you need this” posts. The community feedback of products you bought and love (and sometimes of ones you bought and hated). You’ll still meet new brands and support the ones you already know about. And I’ll still be here, doing what I do best — helping you shop smarter, not harder. (But man, it’s starting to feel harder these days!)

Thank you for making the Flagship what it was. Thank you for trusting me. And thank you for being part of this wild, weird, wonderful community, and going with the flow as we grow and change against the landscape of online shopping.

PS: The last day to shop the Gee Thanks! store on Flagship is July 15. If you want to stay in the loop, make sure you’re following @geethanksjustboughtitpod on Instagram.

And while we’re here: it’s almost been a year since we launched Gee Thanks! Premium right here on Substack — and since then, I’ve shared 30+ brand new podcast episodes, secured exclusive deals just for subscribers, and delivered some of my best, deepest sales content directly to your inboxes. If you’ve been thinking about joining, now’s a great time. The community is strong, the vibes are high, and we’re just getting started.

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