heyo my friends! i told you i was going to do more sharing about the brands i love, and i’m really happy to kick it off with the brand i’ve developed myself (i mean, it only makes sense, right?) – punch!
what is punch?
punch is your place for custom, curated, and cheeky pieces, personalized just for you. babies, birthdays, game day, business launches; punch is here to help you commemorate it. think a jazzy denim jacket for your bridal brunch or kiddos baseball game, custom chenille patched sweatshirts for your girl’s trip, or that cute doodle your kid did commemorated on a sweatshirt. punch is your spot for that. punch started in early 2020 as an online-only brand and branched into a retail location with pop-up events in the summer of 2021 in historic howard lake, mn.
the background
i started punch out of a need for some more creativity in my life, just like all of my other fun little creative endeavors (like this blog). i wanted a way to create tangible pieces that were fun, cheeky, and sentimental. logan (my five year old daughter) had just started doodling and drawing for the first time, and i thought it would be pretty neat to be able to wear her art as a way to create my own sort of graphic tee. fast forward two years later, and punch is thriving in making all sorts of fun custom sweatshirts, jackets, and other wearables as well as stocking some of our fave brands in the shop and online as well. woo hoo!
core values
punch exists to commemorate in a fun way all things that are important to you. family and community are at the heart of what we do. i say “we,” because punch is something that logan and i do together (she is my patch-grabber, store helper, and overall boss-lady-in-training), and we are BIG on making sure we can give back. whether it’s donating sweatshirts to our local cheerleading crew, outfitting some fantastic moms at local events, or just being present in our community, we are big on that. you’ll see us out supporting our local activities and athletics, because i’m a firm believer that when schools thrive, communities thrive.
run on gratitude
i’m so wholeheartedly grateful for the opportunity to get to do this. the fact that people spend their hard-earned dollars at punch is not lost on me, and for that reason i do everything in my power to make their experience a great one. as a personal mission, i try to remain relentless in the pursuit of joy, and punch is an extension of that.
ways to shop
the website is your best bet for all things latest + greatest. i also have a select group of items on etsy as well, but the website directly is the best. i also get a lot of dm’s with questions on personalization; those are a little tough to keep up with sometimes, but i’m more than happy to chat on the ‘gram! we will also be opening the pop-up shop in howard lake starting again in the spring. if you’re local, can’t wait to see ya!
favorite pieces
so my favorite pieces to MAKE are the kid’s artwork. hand’s down. they require the most time, effort, and sometimes creativity on my end to make it work, but someone trusting me with what their little one drew for them is the absolute GREATEST feeling in the world. i also love love love the chenille patches; they’re just so FUN! ok, so maybe all of them are my favorite, because the game day sweatshirts are also the best. i actually teared up one weekend because i counted and i saw 9 (NINE!!!!) of punch’s sweatshirts on some really cool moms over the course of a weekend. i mean it when i say i’m so incredibly grateful.
what i’d change
one thing i want to do in the brand breakdowns is talk about what could make it better, because nobody’s perfect (raise your hand if you’re now singing the miley song). for me, i would love to be able to offer a bigger range of sizes for the littles (kid’s/toddlers is hard to stock right now), have a better handle of the supply chain, and be able to get things out quicker. it’s custom, so it takes time. the one thing i would say, though, is that people have been AMAZING. i was really afraid when i started punch that people would expect me to operate like amazon, and they haven’t. while i’ve had a couple of customers that have been less-than-understanding, most people have been an absolute dream to work with and i’m so so so so grateful. <3
have i mentioned i’m grateful? 🙂 here’s to a custom, curated, and cheeky rest of 2022!