
To build an effective brand is a feat that seems to beย increasingly difficult these days.
In a marketplace that isย overย saturated with up-and-comingย designers and creatives attempting to push their productsย online, it isย nearlyย impossible to set yourself apart long enough to make an impression.
Where many with great purpose and resources have failed, White Cap Co. has succeededย โย almost as if by accident.
โWhite Cap Co. turned one in August,ย thatโs when I started the Instagram,โ founder and creator Eddie Stannard noted.ย Currently their Instagram has 1224 followers.
โIt started super organically,โ Stannard said, โI started the Waterloo Cornhole Club.โ
Cornhole is a lawn game in which participants toss bean bags at a raised platform with a hole in the end โ almost likeย a cross between horseshoes andย skee-ball.
Stannard developed a taste for the game on a road trip down south.
โI went on tour with a band across the states for a month and I thought it would be a cool idea to make a set of [cornholeย game] boards to bring with us,โย he explained.
โSo I made these boards, we took them on tour, we played in Florida and California and all over, got stoked on it, and when I came back I got all my buddies in to it.โ
Theย club started pretty casually and served as a reason for friends to get together and enjoy good food and good drinks.
โTwo or three nights a week weโd drink craft beer and playย cornholeย and barbeque in my backyard and it kept growing,โย Stannard said. The group grew in size from five to 10 and then eventually to 20 plus.
Seeking to bring a sense ofย organization to the club, Stannard thought it would be a cool idea to make some shirts featuring the Waterloo Cornhole Club logo for his friends. Immediately after he listed them online he was met with overwhelming supportย from friends in the community.
โIย made the shirts and they sold out right awayย โย and everyone wanted them,โ he said.
Stannard approachesย his craftย with a pretty amiable philosophy;ย heย makes the things that he likes to wear.ย That is what informedย hisย decision to makeย โdad hatsโ.ย Snapbacks, five-panels, fitted hats; nothing quite fit right until he found the dad hat.
Fortunately, a lot of people feel the same way.
โI decided I wanted to do dad hats,โย he said.ย โThose kept selling.โ
It was the success of those hats that sparked a realization inย Stannard:
โWhen I started selling a ton of these hats I was like โthis might be an outlet to get out my creativity.โโ
Stannard used to play in bands more consistently, but recently found himself in need of a creative outlet.
Heย was in bed hungover when the nameย White Cap Co. came to him.
โAย white cap is the lid ofย theย growler, which is the logo,โ he said.ย The clean, distinct logoย designย showsย a growler jug with three xโs on the label.
โWhite Cap Co.ย also has the same initials [as]ย Waterloo Cornhole Club.โ
Shifting from the local music scene to the local clothing scene has been a smooth transition for Stannard.
โI had a background in it merchandising for bands,โ he explained.
โWhen I played in bands there was obviously a music scene but now that Iโve been getting into the clothing stuff my approach to it with my markets is more of a craft thing,โ he said.
โIโve now realized there is a circle in that, too I see a lot of the same faces and vendors. Thereโs a community and thatโs where I find out about new events.โ
Despite the obvious interest in his product, Stannard still attributes his success to the community.
โThe reason I have got to the point I have so quickly is because Iโve had a lot of support,โย he continued.
โThe more people that are into it the more I get to do.โย
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