Today we’d like to introduce you to Joey Solis.
Hi Joey, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for sharing your story with us – to start, maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers.
My brother Ben and I grew up working in our family construction business doing electrical work. The original plan was to take over the family business together. Still, it wasn’t our passion, so we decided to go into business for ourselves in the sports apparel, headwear, and novelty business. We bought into the Pro Image Sports franchise, currently have four locations, and have been in business for 14 years.
Alright, let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what challenges have you had to overcome?
Running a company is never a smooth road. We were both retail virgins when we decided to go into this venture, so even the simplest thing, like knowing how to close out the point-of-sale drawer at the end of our first day, was an adventure. One of the hardest things is accepting failure and moving on. We often ordered and carried items we thought would be home runs to sell on clearance for pennies on the dollar. The opposite end of that spectrum is we were often advised to carry certain items that we felt were ridiculous and not worth carrying, only to see just how popular they were when we did decide to carry them and knowing how much money we lost by not carrying them sooner. No matter how much you like an employee and think they are hard-working, honest people, it would help if you always kept an eye on all of them. We have had our share of thieves over the years, and it always takes work to deal with it. That is because we truly try to treat our employees like family. We take an interest in their personal lives and families and always go out of our way to help them in any way we can, soo the betrayal when a theft happens always cuts deeper.
As you know, we’re big fans of Pro Image Sports. What can you tell our readers who might not be as familiar with the brand?
We are a local family-owned licensed sports apparel, headwear, and novelty retail store. We specialize in selling team jerseys and headwear for the NFL, MLB, and NBA. We are known for having the biggest and best selection of jerseys and hats in Central Texas. New Era fitted hats, better known as the 5950s, are one of the hottest fashion trends in the nation. All demographics believe 5950s, and our in-house custom-designed hats are in high demand and are purchased from customers not just in the CTX but from all over the country. We take great pride in offering our customers some of the best-designed and unique colorways in fitted hats. We are not a “need” store; we are a “want” store, so we make sure when customers walk into our store, they are met with some of the best customer service they’ve ever had.
If you had to, what characteristic of yours would you give the most credit to?
We have two staples that we want to have every customer who walks thru our doors feel. First and foremost is great customer service. We want them to feel as though they are amongst friends gathered at a local bar. We can discuss the good and bad of their favorite teams or help them match up the new pair of Jordans they just bought with the perfect hat. The second thing we provide is availability. An old Jerry Jones said, owner of the Dallas Cowboys, the best ability is availability. We make great efforts to make sure when a customer comes into our stores that, if they see a hat they want, we have it available in their size.
Pricing:
- $54.99 Custom fitted hats
- $44.99 MLB on field AC fitted hats
- $175.00 NFL Limited jerseys
- $139.99 MLB jerseys
Contact Info:
- Website: www.proimagesports.com
- Instagram: @proimagesportsbartoncreek
