Swift Flight drafts Sonny Hill players to promote jerseys
| 10 August 2009
An appreciation for basketball legends has led James Swift to expand his athletic apparel business.
Swift Flight, Inc. is rolling out a jersey collection under the slogan “Saluting the Stars of Basketball Today While Honoring Those Players That Paved Their Way.” — PHOTO BY ABDUL SULAYMAN/TRIBUNE STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
His company Swift Flight Inc. is rolling out a jersey collection under the slogan “Saluting the Stars of Basketball Today While Honoring Those Players That Paved Their Way.”
“What led me in this direction is just looking at the marketplace and finding my niche and trying to stay competitive in this industry,” said Swift, who started the Willow Grove-based athletic apparel company in 1994.
“When you come out with innovative products you have to try and set a trend and do something that the top companies aren’t doing.”
The two-piece garments, which come in the colors of the 30 NBA teams, feature the team numbers of past and present basketball legends and a compilation of their career statistics.
“We’re trying to get into the lives of people that wear, endorse and collect athletic footwear and apparel,” said Swift, who is a native of Roslyn.
Before bringing the jerseys online, Swift Flight dissimilated a 10-question survey to determine how the marketplace might respond.
The T-shirt jerseys are geared toward a 10-30-year-old demographic and will be accompanied by matching fitted hats.
To ensure that his jersey line is successful in this competitive environment, Swift has compiled a team including Tee Parham of the Sonny Hill League and Eddie Reynolds, who will lead the company’s public relations and marketing efforts. Reynolds will be conducting outreach to area basketball leagues.
“Success is not judged by one person, it’s judged by a group of individuals. I think I have a great team and I appreciate all of the insight and ideas to help us roll out the tribute jersey,” Swift said.
Swift and other company representatives are currently engaged in endorsement talks with basketball industry officials.
“We’re looking to see if they are willing to help us get this off the ground,” said Parham, who has developed key relationships with many professional basketball players during his years with the Sonny Hill League.
Parham estimated that it will take an investment of approximately $600,000 to mass produce the jerseys at a factory based in China and bring them to the marketplace.
Swift aspires to have the jersey line placed in national athletic apparel retailers such as Champs Sports, Modell’s Sporting Goods and Foot Locker within the next three months. However, plans are in the works to take the concept beyond American borders.
“We’re looking to take this worldwide. Basketball is coming up right behind soccer in worldwide popularity and we’re trying to take advantage of that market right now,” Parham said.
When Swift approached imprinting business PTM Sport about branding the jerseys, company officials were impressed with his unique concept.
“We thought the idea was a great idea. Something that wasn’t done before,” said Ray Goldstein of Drexel Hill-based PTM Sport. “The idea is really quality and that’s what we like to do.”