'Life is good' for local partners in positivity
Sun-Sentinel

"Most people are about as happy as they make up their minds to be."– Abraham Lincoln
Call me negative, but I can't stand being around pessimistic people. These are the types for whom nothing ever goes right, and when it does work out, they're waiting for the worst to happen. I believe life is a self-fulfilling prophecy, and you do reap what you sow.

Fashion has provided a way to spread both inspiring and annoying messages. There are the classic "I'm with stupid" T-shirts and useless, pretentious messages such as "You can't afford me." However, the Life is Good brand has a positive vibe to it. It's simple yet solid, affordable and it promotes a universal notion that we're all in this crazy life together through thick and thin.

I first wrote about Jake-N-Rockets, which sells Life is Good T-shirts, stickers and other products in August. I was excited to see a shop in Town Center at Boca Raton that wasn't carrying $1,000 European handbags or $400 dresses. Jake-N-Rockets moved into its new, larger location next to the Yankee Candle Company this week. It will carry even more men's, women's and children's T-shirts, hats, tank tops and other accessories bearing the Life is Good logo and sayings such as "Optimism can take you anywhere."

Owned by Brad Yellin and his brother-in-law Kerry Hoffman, the shop has become a family affair of spreading good karma. "I first came across the brand on a vacation to Key West with my wife," Hoffman says. "We went into a Life is Good store on Duvall Street and we just loved everything we looked at. We ended up buying half the store."

Hoffman, who is also a financial planner, immediately was interested in bringing the brand closer to home in Boca Raton. "I flew up to Boston to meet the creators, Bert and John Jacobs, who are brothers," Hoffman says. "They were dressed in T-shirts and shorts and had a barbecue grill going. It was so anti-meeting, I loved it."

The Life is Good brand is built around doing what you like and liking what you do. The company also hosts annual festivals to raise money for children's charities. Inspired to get on a board with a brand that gave so much back, Hoffman and Yellin first opened a store in Deerfield Beach before closing it to set up shop in Town Center.

"We sell to ages zero to 99," Yellin says. "And whenever someone comes in wearing a Life is Good shirt, we take their picture and put it on our dressing room wall."

Dozens of smiling faces grace the back wall of the boutique, which also carries dog leashes, coffee mugs, golf balls, baby bibs, candles and beaded bracelets. Every six months, the Life is Good headquarters releases fresh, inspiring sayings and graphics.

"In August and January we always have new material," Yellin says. "Our hottest selling shirt right now is a graphic of Jake sitting in an Adirondack chair with 'Happy Hour' printed below it."

Sure, I understand – we're living in Boca, where names like Ralph Lauren, Prada, Gucci, Pucci and Versace are uttered more often than Jesus, Mary and Joseph, but why wear the name of some fancy designer who would likely not even say hi to you in an elevator across your chest when you can sport a real logo to believe in?

"It's amazing what a shirt can do," Yellin says. "It's good to see a 'Life is Good' shirt in the times we're living in." Agreed.

Jake-N-Rockets is located at 6000 Glades Road in Boca Raton. Call 561-544-2101.