It’s commonly believed that the benefits of playing sports reach far past the immediate results, and two former SMU football players are proving that right.
The dedication and teamwork learned on the field by Mustang alumni Jeff Henderson and Adam Walterscheid launched them towards their lucrative screen-printing and apparel company, Pony Xpress Printing, Inc.
Henderson and Walterscheid were both recruited by SMU in the spring of 1998 and lived together their freshmen and sophomore years. Henderson was recruited as a tight end; however, due to a long list of injuries, he was unable to play as often as his roommate and now business partner, Walterscheid. Walterscheid was recruited as a kicker and, according to Henderson, “has a more glorious history” playing for the Mustangs, due to his lack of injuries.
The concept for the company began when Walterscheid worked for what was a spirit shop located in Moody Coliseum. Walterscheid was asked to obtain the business of the SMU fraternities and sororities – even when T-shirts were needed. After outsourcing these orders and completing their educations in the fall of 2002 (Walterscheid) and the spring of 2003 (Henderson), the two decided to expand the small business to allow for internships geared towards college students.
Walterscheid and Henderson offered positions to 75 interns on 30 college campuses, asking them to use their marketing and networking skills to work with various chapters and obtain more business for the company. At SMU, which is one of the larger clients to which the company caters, the transition began to diversify from Greek business into the athletic department.
“SMU was one of our first big clients,” Henderson explained. “It took a while to earn that business; I think just because they know Adam and I as student athletes, they kind of gave us small projects at a time until we earned their business within the first 18 months of being out.” Their persistence has paid off; SMU has hired Pony Xpress Printing for all their athletic apparel since 2004.
SMU sports was just a gateway into the world of sports for the company. They design and produce all the game day promotions for the Dallas Stars, as well as post-season wear for local teams who are unable to order apparel in advance. Pony Xpress Printing also works with celebrities and talents looking to create their own line. Athletes such as Patriot running back Sammy Morris and Raven wide receiver Mark Clayton have met with the company’s creative team to design their own fashion line.
It seems that these SMU alumni have their work cut out for them. Having gone from personally printing 300 shirts a night at best, to now producing 500 to 800 shirts an hour, the shelves of household stores such as Wal-Mart and Nordstrom are likely to have just a little Mustang mania weaved in.
