If you’re lucky enough to work in or work with companies involved in what is generally known as “the sporting goods industry” you already know how important sports are to millions of people around the world. Sports are a huge part of so many cultures and so many cultures rely on their sports heros for inspiration and entertainment. People’s love of sports and their desire to support their favorite teams or play a sport personally is what drives the sporting goods business. We know this because it’s what’s helped drive our business for over 80 years and we are extremely thankful to all of you that play sports or have ever worn a jersey with a team name, player name or number on it. Chances are, we had some small part in personalizing that jersey. As my brother Brian used to say, if you stacked up all the letters and numbers we have manufacturered over the years, they would reach the moon and back. Or something like that. In any event, sports have been the mainstay of our business for 80 years now and we recently had the chance to rub elbows with others in the sporting goods industry at the NSGA Management Conference. Some we have done business with for many decades, like the ones listed here:
- Johnny Macs Sporting Goods
- Schuylkill Valley Sporting Goods
- Allen Sports Center
- Kesslers Team Sports
- Nill Brothers Team Sports
- Dixie Sporting Goods (now BSN)
- Hibbett Sports
- Graphic Edge
- Denver Athletic Supply
This is just a partial list but we were glad to see all of you and meet new friends who all have one thing in common–serving those who need sporting goods. Whether you had the chance to talk with me personally, or meet Brian Sukarukoff or chat with Dave Wheatley or Jason Murphy or Karin Bellinghausen, on behalf of everyone at GroupeSTAHL, it was good seeing you. And in case you’re wondering, despite rumors that I have retired, (I have stepped away from day to day operations but am honestly busier than ever) I am still very active in many “big picture” projects and acquisitions at GroupeSTAHL, most of which involve sporting goods in one way or the other. We look forward to bringing you the latest innovations in heat printing that will help you serve your customers faster and easier than ever when it comes to custom team names, custom player names and numbers, sponsor names and all types of sports uniform decoration.