We were recently questioned for an article on 360medias webpage. Here is what I responded with. It gives some insight into the business:
I am 29. I have lived in Lansing, Cocoa Beach, FL and Seaside, CA besides Saginaw. I went to Arthur Hill High School class of ’99. I have a Bachelor’s degree in Graphic Design from Saginaw Valley State University (graduated Summa Cum Laude) and received a minor in Communication. I currrently attend SVSU for a master’s degree in Communication and Digital Media. The only music project I am currently doing is Rock the Party (80-modern cover music.). The last original project I did was called The FutureHolds (Radiohead meets The Shins?).
I do have a partner, Brian Connolly. He is also in Rock the Party and was in The FutureHolds too. He has an Industrial Management degree from Baker College. He also attended Arthur Hill, class of ’02. We ended up finding out later that we actually had a drafting class together in school. Brian and I met through friends playing poker. We started discussing doing a business after we both discovered that we were having a hard time finding specific types of humor t-shirts that we liked. We assumed others were having this problem too and figured maybe we could do something out there that could fill this void. The t-shirt industry is already flooded with shops so we started to devise ways that we could become valuable in the market. We found five services that we could offer that would create a unique experience for customers and clients: 1.) Predesigned humor t-shirts displayed in the store (general retail sales), 2.) Instant custom t-shirts (the customer’s own idea on a shirt within ten minutes), 3.) Large or small bulk orders for businesses, sports teams, events, bands, weddings, etc., 4.) Personal company branding (Bomb Tees and it’s logo as it’s own brand identity), and 5.) Vinyl decals (works on windows, vehicles and other various surfaces).
We also offer professional in-house design work, which many shops are not able to offer. We also have a very clean and cohesive storefront that creates what a couple friends have compared to as a “high-end Chicago shop”.
We originally were going to call the business TCB Tees (for takin’ care of business) but then quickly learned that the name was trademarked by Elvis Presley’s estate. We then went through a long process to try to find a good three to four letter title for the business. After countless options we came across bomb and felt that it fit really well. After the logo was finalized we realized that this was exactly the look and type of branding that we had hoped to release.
Our short-term goals are to have a successful grand opening and to provide a fast, fun t-shirt service to the Tri-cities area. We plan to expand the business with more employees and production equipment.
In the long-term we would like this unique compilations of services we offer to allow us to expand and eventually open shops in surrounding areas, such as Midland and Bay City.
This is a multi-purpose shop. There is also a business being run out of the same space called The Music Lab. The Music Lab is run by Saginaw local Bill Fiebig III (also a guitarist in Rock the Party). He also attended Arthur Hill class of ’99. The Music Lab sells used music equipment and new music accessories. They offer instrument repairs and music lessons for guitar, banjo, bass, mandolin, fiddle and drums. For stringed instruments the lessons are taught by Bill Fiebig Jr. The drum lessons are taught by Rock the Party’s drummer Adam White.
