DanielHouse
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by: Daniel House (@DanielHouseNFL)
When Callie Inman and Jayme Buck were shopping for trendy women’s clothing, an idea crossed their minds.
Inman and Buck searched for Minnesota sports gear, but couldn’t find any products they liked. Many of the clothing designs lacked creativity, were too flashy, or didn’t fit well.
Callie and Jayme became friends in second grade and always wanted to launch a business together. Beginning in January of 2018, the duo met for coffee every Monday to share different ideas. After making a shopping trip to search for creative and trendy Minnesota Vikings gear, the two friends identified an entrepreneurial opportunity.
“It was right around the time of the Minneapolis Miracle. We went searching for some gear, like an outfit to wear and there was nothing we liked. The next Monday, we started to chat about that and realized there was a major gap in the market,” co-founder Jayme Buck said. “There was no clothing that was trendy and fun in the sports realm for women.”
Inman and Buck started creating designs and clothing options for Minnesota sports fans. The business, “Fan Girl,” was launched in their homes. They each grabbed an iron and began producing clothing on a countertop. Every shirt was originally created, sold and shipped by the co-founders.
“We started making them in Jayme’s mom’s house — on the counter with an iron. Like a real iron. Luckily, we’ve grown since then. Last year, when we were starting off, we bought an industrial heat press. Me and Jayme were making every shirt that we sent out,” co-founder Callie Inman said. “We’ve grown this now to where we have a printer, so we don’t have to make our shirts anymore, which is very nice.”
The duo’s vision has reached new heights through creative social media marketing and fan support. Now, just 16 months later, the duo has launched a line of Minnesota sports gear, which includes local Twin Cities football, baseball, basketball and hockey teams. Inman and Buck work with a designer to bring all of their ideas to life. Once the brainstorming process is complete, the graphics are sent to a printer in Shakopee, Minn.
“A couple of our buzz words are understated and trendy. We try to stay in that realm. We try to come up with clever things and stuff that isn’t super loud and super in your face. [We want] something that you can wear to a game, but also to brunch with your friends, happy hour on Wednesday, or even around the house,” Inman said. “It doesn’t feel like you need to wear it at a game event. That’s one of our biggest factors in deciding what our designs and styles look like.”
Most recently, Fan Girl created a “Row the Boat” collection to provide Minnesota Golden Gophers fans with trendy, understated and versatile gear. After hearing customers express interest in University of Minnesota clothing, Buck and Inman explored the concept. Heather and P.J. Fleck owned Minnesota football’s “Row the Boat” trademark, but a mutual friend connected them with the Gophers’ first lady. Callie and Jayme met Heather for coffee and presented their ideas.
“[Heather] asked us what we wanted out of the meeting. We said we would love to use Row the Boat on our apparel, and in turn, we [knew they] spent a lot of timing giving back and volunteering. We decided 10 percent of all the sales could go toward the Fleck Family Fund, which Heather decided would go toward the Ronald McDonald House and the Masonic Children’s Hospital,” Inman said.
After a quick elevator pitch from the Fan Girl co-founders, it didn’t take long for Heather to express her support.
“We said that, and she just looked at us and said, ‘sounds great, let’s do it.’ Ever since then, she’s been super involved and awesome,” Inman said. “She is so excited. Like it humbles me how excited she is. She is always texting us and asking what sales are like. She’s like, ‘let’s make this huge.’”
The clothing collection has been a collaborative effort between Inman, Buck and Fleck. Heather provided design input and continues to take an interest in Fan Girl’s vision. Together, they have created four exclusive “Row the Boat” clothing designs.
“[Heather] actually helped us kind of come up with what we wanted the designs to look like. She told us a couple font ideas and a few other things and we put those designs together and gave them to our designer,” Inman said. “[The designer] brought them to life. Heather has been amazing to work with and has been super excited about this collaboration.”
Buck and Inman said one of the most exciting aspects of this partnership is the impact each sale has on families in the Twin Cities. Ten percent of Row the Boat Collection sales will be donated to The Fleck Family Fund in support of the University of Minnesota Masonic Children’s Hospital and Ronald McDonald House. It was the perfect way to combine Fan Girl’s values with Minnesota football’s “Row the Boat” culture.
“It’s super special [to donate]. We always knew that we wanted to be able to give back. To be at a point now to be able to do that is really great,” Buck said. “Each of those foundations are huge in the community, both in Minnesota and Minneapolis. To be able to support them is really special to us.”
As Fan Girl's brand continues to grow, it’s surreal for Buck and Inman to see fans wearing their clothing to games. Customers are sharing the products on social media, which is sparking interest among Minnesota sports enthusiasts.
“We just have so much engagement and we’ve built a really awesome community of Minnesota sports fans, specifically women. I feel like it’s so unique. People love following us and seeing new styles,” Buck said. “We have a lot of return customers who wear our gear religiously on game day. It’s really fun to watch that and get tagged in photos of people wearing Fan Girl.”
As the business reaches new milestones, two lifelong friends are watching their vision come to life. The duo shares a similar passion with every customer — a love for Minnesota sports.
“We are Minnesota sports fans, we are women and we know what they want because we are our customer. This is all stuff that we wear and want to wear,” Buck said. “Fan Girl has a lot of fun things coming up. It’s just exciting for us.”
To visit Fan Girl’s website, click here: https://fangirlmn.com/collections/row-the-boat-college-minnesota
For more about the Fleck Family fund, here's a video:
When Callie Inman and Jayme Buck were shopping for trendy women’s clothing, an idea crossed their minds.
Inman and Buck searched for Minnesota sports gear, but couldn’t find any products they liked. Many of the clothing designs lacked creativity, were too flashy, or didn’t fit well.
Callie and Jayme became friends in second grade and always wanted to launch a business together. Beginning in January of 2018, the duo met for coffee every Monday to share different ideas. After making a shopping trip to search for creative and trendy Minnesota Vikings gear, the two friends identified an entrepreneurial opportunity.
“It was right around the time of the Minneapolis Miracle. We went searching for some gear, like an outfit to wear and there was nothing we liked. The next Monday, we started to chat about that and realized there was a major gap in the market,” co-founder Jayme Buck said. “There was no clothing that was trendy and fun in the sports realm for women.”
Inman and Buck started creating designs and clothing options for Minnesota sports fans. The business, “Fan Girl,” was launched in their homes. They each grabbed an iron and began producing clothing on a countertop. Every shirt was originally created, sold and shipped by the co-founders.
“We started making them in Jayme’s mom’s house — on the counter with an iron. Like a real iron. Luckily, we’ve grown since then. Last year, when we were starting off, we bought an industrial heat press. Me and Jayme were making every shirt that we sent out,” co-founder Callie Inman said. “We’ve grown this now to where we have a printer, so we don’t have to make our shirts anymore, which is very nice.”
The duo’s vision has reached new heights through creative social media marketing and fan support. Now, just 16 months later, the duo has launched a line of Minnesota sports gear, which includes local Twin Cities football, baseball, basketball and hockey teams. Inman and Buck work with a designer to bring all of their ideas to life. Once the brainstorming process is complete, the graphics are sent to a printer in Shakopee, Minn.
“A couple of our buzz words are understated and trendy. We try to stay in that realm. We try to come up with clever things and stuff that isn’t super loud and super in your face. [We want] something that you can wear to a game, but also to brunch with your friends, happy hour on Wednesday, or even around the house,” Inman said. “It doesn’t feel like you need to wear it at a game event. That’s one of our biggest factors in deciding what our designs and styles look like.”
Most recently, Fan Girl created a “Row the Boat” collection to provide Minnesota Golden Gophers fans with trendy, understated and versatile gear. After hearing customers express interest in University of Minnesota clothing, Buck and Inman explored the concept. Heather and P.J. Fleck owned Minnesota football’s “Row the Boat” trademark, but a mutual friend connected them with the Gophers’ first lady. Callie and Jayme met Heather for coffee and presented their ideas.
“[Heather] asked us what we wanted out of the meeting. We said we would love to use Row the Boat on our apparel, and in turn, we [knew they] spent a lot of timing giving back and volunteering. We decided 10 percent of all the sales could go toward the Fleck Family Fund, which Heather decided would go toward the Ronald McDonald House and the Masonic Children’s Hospital,” Inman said.
After a quick elevator pitch from the Fan Girl co-founders, it didn’t take long for Heather to express her support.
“We said that, and she just looked at us and said, ‘sounds great, let’s do it.’ Ever since then, she’s been super involved and awesome,” Inman said. “She is so excited. Like it humbles me how excited she is. She is always texting us and asking what sales are like. She’s like, ‘let’s make this huge.’”
The clothing collection has been a collaborative effort between Inman, Buck and Fleck. Heather provided design input and continues to take an interest in Fan Girl’s vision. Together, they have created four exclusive “Row the Boat” clothing designs.
“[Heather] actually helped us kind of come up with what we wanted the designs to look like. She told us a couple font ideas and a few other things and we put those designs together and gave them to our designer,” Inman said. “[The designer] brought them to life. Heather has been amazing to work with and has been super excited about this collaboration.”
Buck and Inman said one of the most exciting aspects of this partnership is the impact each sale has on families in the Twin Cities. Ten percent of Row the Boat Collection sales will be donated to The Fleck Family Fund in support of the University of Minnesota Masonic Children’s Hospital and Ronald McDonald House. It was the perfect way to combine Fan Girl’s values with Minnesota football’s “Row the Boat” culture.
“It’s super special [to donate]. We always knew that we wanted to be able to give back. To be at a point now to be able to do that is really great,” Buck said. “Each of those foundations are huge in the community, both in Minnesota and Minneapolis. To be able to support them is really special to us.”
As Fan Girl's brand continues to grow, it’s surreal for Buck and Inman to see fans wearing their clothing to games. Customers are sharing the products on social media, which is sparking interest among Minnesota sports enthusiasts.
“We just have so much engagement and we’ve built a really awesome community of Minnesota sports fans, specifically women. I feel like it’s so unique. People love following us and seeing new styles,” Buck said. “We have a lot of return customers who wear our gear religiously on game day. It’s really fun to watch that and get tagged in photos of people wearing Fan Girl.”
As the business reaches new milestones, two lifelong friends are watching their vision come to life. The duo shares a similar passion with every customer — a love for Minnesota sports.
“We are Minnesota sports fans, we are women and we know what they want because we are our customer. This is all stuff that we wear and want to wear,” Buck said. “Fan Girl has a lot of fun things coming up. It’s just exciting for us.”
To visit Fan Girl’s website, click here: https://fangirlmn.com/collections/row-the-boat-college-minnesota
For more about the Fleck Family fund, here's a video:
