In June 2017, founder William Hardcastle was involved in an accident and suffered a life-altering injury.  Doctors told William he would never walk unaided again. Partial paralysis and being confined to a bed recovering from surgery, he was stripped of movement, identity, and direction. For months he couldn’t move a leg, his world shrank to four walls and he fell into deep reflection.

In that dark silence, something shifted. He began to see life through a different lens; his perspective widened, revealing a world where countless others have far worse experiences than he had. Many are unseen, uncared for, stripped of dignity and accustom to loss. William made a choice and didn’t give up, he focused and told his brain he was not going to be paralyzed. Then, in a meditative state in early 2018 a miracle happened, nerve pathways were remade and life returned to his toes which led to the full recovery of his paralysis.

That moment sparked everything. From 2018 through 2019, William relearned how to walk: painfully, persistently, step by step. With every step forward, a quiet voice echoed louder, “I have a second chance and I will use it to help and inspire others to facilitate real and permanent change.”

Seeking healing and clarity, he traveled to South America, where he met his future wife. Together, they explored the continent through small villages trading labor for shelter, humbled and welcomed by strangers who had little but gave everything. The simplicity of their lives, their kindness and humanity had left a permanent mark. 

Then the world shut down.
COVID-19 hit in late 2019, and William returned to the UK while his partner returned to the U.S. Months later, when borders reopened, they reunited and moved to Seattle—ready to begin a new chapter. What they found there would change everything.

In the shadow of billion-dollar headquarters, just one mile from the world’s most powerful companies, William saw something that shook him to his core: a population ignored and at risk to themselves suffering from an event which only seperated people further. Seattle’s income divide is one of the worst in the nation—the top 20% of earners make over 18 times what the bottom 20% earn. It was a stark, heartbreaking contrast: unimaginable wealth turning from suffering. It was a tale of two cities, inside the same city, and the situation broke his heart. It ebcame apparent that this was a place rife with "step-over-poverty".

With everything he’d been through, he couldn’t look away. “What can I do to make the power of choice impossible to ignore?” thought WIlliam. From that moment, he went to work. He kept asking, “What if the choice is made easy?”. He believed people wanted to do good, they just have the rush life of life distracting them. So he created WannaHug, a way for people to turn everyday purchases into acts of compassion.

He started with a simple idea; Walking the streets of Seattle wearing hoodies branded with questions that would encourage connection. He asked people experiencing homelessness: “Would you like a hug?” or “Wanna hug?”. The result was palpable.

Today, WannaHug is a U.S.-made comfortwear brand that gives back. For every purchase, a customer also chooses an essential item—like socks, beanies, or towels—to donate directly to someone experiencing homelessness. It’s more than clothing. It’s a movement. A way to say, “You matter. You are seen. You are not forgotten and this is the beginning of a new world where we care for eachother and no-one is left behind”.

Still staying true to WannaHug’s roots as “a way for people to choose positive tangible impacts through consumerism,” William’s goal remains simple and bold: to build a community-driven movement rooted in empathy, powered by choice, and driven by hope. Born from a miracle and built with purpose, WannaHug is made to wrap the world in comfort—one hoodie, one act of kindness, one hug at a time. Only together will we achieve unity.