When I first heard the headline that Whole Foods was banning all employees – including staffers above the 51st parallel – from wearing poppies this year I was a bit confused. “Can’t wear a poppy at work?” I asked out loud to the ether. Why?

This month marks my fifth year in business. Similar to divorce, the statistics for failure are high. It’s bleak. Closing a business is more likely than splitting up for the first time, getting hit by a bus, or being friends with a vegan. Though this reality is daunting, I’ve heard the only way to keep the doors open is to keep on. 

As we approach the eleventh day of the eleventh month I can’t help but to reflect. Seeing the veterans canvassing about town and the poppies gently pinned on lapels of coats ensures that it is a sobering time. It’s time to remember the fighters and the fallen.

Remembrance Day is sombre day. Leading up to the 11th, there is pride filling my heart and quiet reflections in my mind. As I thought about the history, I got to thinking about the uniforms of the effort. Who made them? How many were made? And what impact on fashion did it leave?