EB & Co
EB and Co. is a modern accessories brand and fashion boutique founded by Emily Bordner, offering jewelry, handbags, leather goods, and hair accessories from Kansas City locations in Brookside, County Club Plaza, and Crown Center.
The Story
Emily Bordner founded EB & Co in 2012 in Kansas City, Missouri, turning her own sense of style into a retail business. She opened the first store in Brookside with a simple idea: stylish, functional accessories that finish an outfit without requiring a size. A second location followed in the County Club Plaza, and the brand added an airport presence and booth rentals inside other stores alongside its growing e-commerce operation.
Earrings became the hero product early. Bordner partnered with a manufacturer in India for hand-beaded pieces and expanded into headbands, scrunchies, necklaces, and handbags. The inventory always reflected her taste-modern, chic, and built around the real women who shopped there.
The brand blew up in early 2024 when Taylor Swift wore an EB & Co ring to the AFC Championship. The ring, a custom Travis Kelce-themed piece developed after Bordner built a relationship with Kelce's mother Donna, went viral overnight. Shopify notifications started dinging nonstop. Sales climbed 50% from 2023 to 2024, and wholesale orders surged more than 300%.
Today, EB & Co operates three Kansas City-area locations-Brookside, County Club Plaza, and Crown Center-alongside an online store and growing wholesale business. Bordner's question on How I Built This Lab was whether to chase the 90% of revenue in direct-to-consumer retail or the faster-growing wholesale side. The Taylor Swift moment answered that faster than any business plan could.
Key Facts & Metrics
Products
Statement Necklaces & Charm Bars
Curated necklaces and customizable charm bars that reflect Emily Bordner's personal style and the brand's focus on versatile, mix-and-match pieces.
Handbags & Leather Goods
A curated selection of handbags and leather accessories designed to complement the brand's jewelry and hair accessory lines.
Hand-Beaded Earrings
EB & Co's hero product - hand-beaded earrings made in partnership with an artisan manufacturer in India. Available in custom team colors and everyday designs.
Custom Headbands & Scrunchies
Trendy hair accessories including custom headbands and scrunchies designed to add a finishing touch to any outfit.
Company Timeline
2012 — EB & Co founded
Emily Bordner founded EB & Co in Kansas City, Missouri, opening the first brick-and-mortar location in Brookside with a focus on stylish, sizeless accessories.
2017 — County Club Plaza location opens
A second storefront opened at the Country Club Plaza, expanding the brand's physical presence across Kansas City.
2021 — Crown Center and airport expansion
EB & Co added a Crown Center location and began selling through airport retail, broadening reach beyond standalone stores.
2024 — Taylor Swift ring goes viral
Taylor Swift wore a custom Travis Kelce-themed EB & Co ring to the AFC Championship, sending Shopify notifications into overdrive. Sales jumped 50% and wholesale orders surged over 300%.
Episodes Featuring EB & Co
Advice Line with Tim Ferriss (August 2025)
Tim Ferriss joins Guy Raz for a live Advice Line session, taking calls from three entrepreneurs navigating very different growth challenges. Lauren Menard scales GOB's mycelium earplugs across music venues and DTC while raising a seed round. Emily Bordner decides between wholesale expansion and brick-and-mortar growth after a viral Taylor Swift moment. Kimberly Becker contemplates shifting K. Becker Designs to a pre-order model. Ferriss offers frameworks on parallel verticals, low-cost experiments, and redefining success beyond revenue.
Advice Line with Tim Ferriss
Guy Raz and Tim Ferriss open the Advice Line to three founders at different inflection points. Lauren Menard is torn between a national venue deal and DTC growth for her mycelium earplug company. Emily Bordner's viral moment with Taylor Swift has wholesale taking off but she doesn't know where to focus. Kimberly Becker is testing the waters on pre-orders for her sustainable women's clothing brand. Tim pushes each caller past the obvious trade-off toward an experiment they can actually run.
