My shopping cart
Your cart is currently empty.
Continue ShoppingFrequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
If you cannot find the answers to your questions below, please contact us!
Q. Why is the company called 3E Love?
A. 3E stands for the 3E's of our social message. Embrace diversity, Educate your community, and empower one another. Love means... Love life! We believe that by buying and using our products, you are naturally supporting our 3E's. You are embracing who you are and the people you love, you are educating others when they ask you about the symbol (or just making them think), and you are empowering yourself and those around you to love life!
Q. What is the symbol called?
A. We officially refer to it as the International Symbol of Acceptance, but it is naturally most commonly referred to as the wheelchair heart symbol.
Q. Who designed the wheelchair heart symbol symbol?
A. 3E Love founder Annie Hopkins (1984-2009) envisioned it in 2004 during her junior year of college at the University of Illinois. With the help of Sean Frangella at Viytale Designs, Annie created a one-of-a-kind symbol!
Q. What does the wheelchair heart symbol mean?
A. It means whatever it means to you! We love it that people all over the world embrace it and have their own special meanings for why the love it so much. For our official answer, go to our About Us Section of the web site.
Q. Do Annie and Stevie have disabilities?
A. Yes, both siblings and co-founders were born with a genetic neuromuscular condition called Spinal Muscular Atrophy Type 2. Read more about the company and it's roots in the About Us section.
Q. Am I allowed to use the symbol?
A. Unfortunately, no. The symbol cannot be used without our involvement or written permission. We are honored that you love the symbol so much that you want to use it, but the symbol is copyrighted and trademarked and we do enforce our rights no matter the circumstance. By strictly enforcing this, we are putting ourselves in the best position to spread our social message and build a successful company.
Q. Is it illegal for me to get a permanent tattoo of the wheelchair heart symbol?
A. Technically, no. We LOVE it that you like our symbol and what we stand for so much that you would do that. We also know that it has meaning to you beyond what it means to us. In fact, the popularity of the symbol spread first as a tattoo that Annie, our founder, had on her shoulder. Tattoos are a huge part of our culture and history. If you do get the tattoo, we kindly ask you to support us in addition to your local tattoo parlor. Buy our products, spread the word about 3E Love!
Q. Is 3E Love a non-profit?
A. 3E Love was created to be a social entrepreneurial experiment. We do not accept donations or handouts of any kind. We are like any other clothing line or small business! We believe that it is more empowering to spread our social message through a disability-owned business. If we are successful at doing so, then it sends an even more positive message to others that people can overcome challenges and that embracing who you are can lead to great things.
Q. Where does my money go?
A. See above. We are a disability-owned business and we have bills like every other operation. Rent, utilities, supplies, garments, employees, taxes, toilet paper... Everything you can think of. We do not accept donations or have grants, so selling our products is our method of sustaining our existence and promoting our social message.
Q. Can I work for 3E Love?
A. We regularly have part-time help in the office and in other parts of the country when we take our show on the road. Fill out our employment inquiry form and we will look through all the submissions whenever we are looking for people. We will NOT respond to submissions because we are not openly hiring. We will contact you if we are looking for someone like you.
Q. Can 3E Love print t-shirts and other apparel for my group?
A. Yes! Just contact us with a description or picture of your design(s). Our pricing and turnaround are usually better than market averages.
Q. Is Stevie available for speaking opportunities?
A. Yes! Stevie regularly gives keynote speeches at corporate and fundraising events. As we venture through this new life during the Covid-19 Pandemic, please note Stevie is not available for in-person speaking engagements at this time. If you are interested in having Stevie speak for a virtual engagement, please email hello@steviespeaks.com.
Q. Where can I suggest products and designs?
A. We welcome all of your ideas. Please send them to us via email. Do not be offended if we do not use your idea or respond immediately. We take new product development slowly. We only launch a few new products each year.
Q. Can your items be purchased in bulk?
A. Yes they can! Groups get discounted pricing and free shipping for purchases of 10 clothing items or more. Check out our Group Orders for complete details. For non-clothing items, contact us about bulk pricing.
Q. Can items be customized?
A. Yes, but it adds to the cost and we're only able to customize wearable apparel. We unfortunately are not able to customize hard goods at this time. It is usually not cost efficient to customize less than 24 clothing items. Check out our Group Order/Custom Orders page for more details.
Q. Can we sell your products for our fundraiser?
A. We are still able to offer fundraising services, however we are unable to offer online fundraising at this time. All fundraising services for the remainder of 2020 will be available via paper order forms only. If you are interested in hosting a fundraiser, please fill out a Group Order Request.
Q. Do you have a store that we can shop at instead?
A. We do not have a store as we function out of a warehouse! While we love to have visitors, due to COVID-19, we unfortunately are not allowing customers into our warehouse to shop our inventory as to cut down on face-to-face interaction at this time.
Q. Do you charge sales taxes?
A. We charge sales taxes on all orders shipped to an Illinois address to comply with our state sales tax laws. Items are taxed at 8.0%.
Q. Do you ship international orders?
A. Yes! We have sold our products to customers in over 20 countries. Shipping and handling will be more expensive, but if you are able to afford it, we will ship it! Orders will take longer to arrive so please be patient. Also, some countries will charge the receiver a customs fee for out of country purchases before delivering a package. We will not be liable for these extra customs fees. Please contact your local post office or customs office with your questions.
Q. When can I expect my order to arrive?
A. All orders will be shipped within 2 weeks of you placing your online order. Some orders are shipped the same day and others take longer. We stock roughly 75% of our items. Newer items or less popular items are printed on demand.
Q. What shipping carriers do you use?
A. Most orders are shipped using the United States Post Office (USPS). Smaller packages are shipped using 1st Class Mail and larger packages go Priority Mail. We use these methods to save on cost and pass the savings on to you with fair shipping rates. Occasionally, packages over a certain weight limit will be shipped with UPS Ground. Your shipping confirmation email will give you such details with a tracking number.
Q. Is my package lost? It has not arrived after 2 weeks.
A. Probably not. Please contact us though if your tracking number is not giving you answers or if you have not received a shipping confirmation yet.
Q. Is it possible to have an order expedited?
A. Yes. Upon request, we can send your package with overnight shipping and guaranteed arrival times. Orders that require such services should be placed over the phone or email so that we can first check item availability and charge appropriate shipping charges for higher cost services.
Q. Can I place a gift order and send it direct to the recipient?
A. Yes! We love sending gift orders. At checkout, indicate that it is a gift order and we can leave out payment information and include an optional gift note. Be sure to put recipients address as shipping address and yours as the billing address.
Q. What apparel brands do you print on?
A. All shirts and sweatshirts are printed on Gildan Activewear or American Apparel. Some specialty items use other brands. Gildan is a standard economy brand, used by most companies and screen printers in America. American Apparel is a more expensive higher quality brand popular with youth and college aged demographics. American Apparel is American made and therefore more expensive. Their products are softer and lighter weight and tend to run a little taller. Please consult size charts page for full details.
Q. Where and how are your shirts made?
A. We actually have our own full-service print shop where we screen print all of our own products! T-shirts and other garments are purchased blank and then we print the designs before selling them to you. This system allows us to keep our costs low and be flexible enough to offer custom and group orders. When not printing 3E Love stuff, we print for bands, companies, non-profits, schools, etc.
Q. How do I exchange an item that doesn't fit?
A. Please fill out our Exchange Request form and read our Exchange Policy
Q. I received incorrect/damaged items, what do I do?
A. We are sorry to hear that! Please fill out our Customer Service Form and we will do our best to fix it!
Q. Can I return an item?
A. Yes, any unwashed unaltered items can be returned within 30 days of delivery. Unless it is being returned due to manufacturer or printing defect, we will not refund your original shipping costs. We are not responsible for return shipping costs incurred. Return items to 3E Love, 1510 Hubbard Ave, Batavia, Il 60510 and include a note requesting a refund for the item(s).
Q. How do I know what size to order?
A. All of our items have size charts. We highly recommend checking these before placing your orders. We suggest taking a ruler or tape measure to your favorite clothing items and comparing them to the specifications in our size charts to compare.
Q. Will your items shrink?
A. All t-shirts are made with 100% pre-shrunk cotton. If washed according to tag instructions, they should not noticeably shrink. All sweatshirts are contain polyester and will not shrink if washed appropriately.
Get 15% off your order of $25 or More
Join our mailing list for discounts, merch previews, and featured acceptance stories sent right to your inbox!
