Tender Loving Empire is an independent record label

Independent record label

An independent record label is a record label operating without the funding of or outside the organizations of the major record labels. A great number of bands and musical acts begin on independent labels.-Overview:...

 and retail consignment store based in Portland, Oregon

Portland, Oregon

Portland is a city located in the Pacific Northwest, near the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. As of the 2010 Census, it had a population of 583,776, making it the 29th most populous city in the United States...

. The record label began in 2005 and the first Tender Loving Empire store opened in June 2007 in Northwest Portland. In May 2010 the current store opened in downtown Portland.

Record Label

Founded in 2005, Tender Loving Empire has over 30 releases. The label was born in the basement of Jared and Brianne Mees's Portland home. In 2007, when the Tender Loving Empire store opened, the label set up shop there. In 2010, it moved again to its current downtown location at 412 SW 10th Ave, next to Powell's Books

Powell's Books

Powell's Books is a chain of bookstores in Oregon's Portland metropolitan area. Powell's headquarters, dubbed Powell's City of Books, claims to be the largest independent new and used bookstore in the world. Powell's City of Books is located in the Pearl District on the edge of downtown and...

.

Tender Loving Empire puts out an annual compilation of local and national music, titled Friends and Friends of Friends. The fourth volume will be released November 3, 2011.

On August 3, 2011 Tender Loving Empire band Typhoon performed on The Late Show with David Letterman.

Artists:

• Typhoon (Portland band)
  Typhoon (Portland band)
  Typhoon is an American indie rock band that began in Salem, Oregon in 2005 and is currently based in Portland, Oregon. They are signed to the indie record label Tender Loving Empire. The band has numerous members and regularly performs with 10-14 players on stage...
  
  
• Boy Eats Drum Machine
  Boy Eats Drum Machine
  Jon Ragel, better known by his stage name Boy Eats Drum Machine, is an American solo artist based in Portland, Oregon. He has been described as "a DJ, vocalist and multi-instrumentalist, who uses his Boy Eats Drum Machine project to showcase his love of all things percussive." -Discography:*2006:...
  
  
• Loch Lomond (band)
  Loch Lomond (band)
  Loch Lomond is a band based in Portland, Oregon, United States that was started as a solo recording project of Ritchie Young in 2003. With help of engineer/producer Rob Oberdorder, Young crafted the first Loch Lomond album, When We Were Mountains, which was released on In Music We Trust Records...
  
  
• And And And
• Radiation City
• Y La Bamba
• Jared Mees and the Grown Children
• Finn Riggans
• Hosannas
• Gratatillium
• Small Sur

Store

In 2007 the Tender Loving Empire store opened in NW Portland. The store sells handmade goods on consignment, all Tender Loving Empire releases, and has a local music section. The store has a silk-screening studio in the back where they do custom orders and print their own line of t-shirts. In 2010, the store moved to its bigger downtown location.