SILVER SUPPORTER
The roots of Ripon Athletic were formed a century ago when John Sand founded SandKnit, which was known for its full line of custom athletic uniforms, award sweaters and jackets. Hank Derleth was with SandKnit from 1963-84 and then joined Ripon Awardjackets as president. The company changed to Ripon Athletic and grew and in 1992 acquired all the SandKnit machinery, equipment and its former plant in Berlin, Wisconsin. Ripon’s products are manufactured and sold through team dealers and it has many high school, collegiate and professional customers in the U.S., Canada, Europe and Japan. Sand and Derleth were honored for their successes with induction into the Sporting Goods Industry Hall of Fame.
Can you share with everyone a little about your company and commitment to the dealer/retailer network? Who we are is a tale of three companies: Sand Knit, Ripon Jacket and Ripon Athletic. Celebrating Sand Knit’s 100th anniversary in 2021 has allowed us to appreciate who we are, the people who helped us and refresh our view for the future. The history and actions of these three companies show the commitment we have as well as the importance of relationships in the dealer network.
What are some of the new/innovative products everyone should know about? • Our No. 4061 Edge football jersey is a leader in the market for fit, performance, durability and design. It provides every football player the opportunity to wear a true and tested professional-grade jersey. • Versa jerseys: Using our “in-house” Dyfuze (sublimation) capabilities, we are able to provide basketball, baseball and softball jerseys that are one layer but reversible with two different looks. Our Ultra Flex fabric provides a high end, quality jersey with very little grin through. Versa jerseys provide great flexibility and performance for teams.
How have you adapted in the past yearand-a-half from COVID? We were declared non-essential in March 2020. After viewing the COVID landscape, we immediately asked ourselves how can we use our manufacturing capacity to help our neighbors. In less than 7 business days, our team R&D’d (researched and developed) and began producing what would become 5300+ reusable gowns for the Wisconsin Sheriff’s Department and 30,000+ fabric masks. We adapted because we have great people! I can’t say enough about our group’s effort that saw them give of themselves to help others. That energy propelled us forward as we came back to work producing uniforms and jackets to meet customer needs.
What are you looking forward to about this year’s Management Conference? What do you find most valuable? The speakers are always a positive aspect of the Conference. There is always something to learn listening to them. But especially given the past year of “safer at home,” we look forward to seeing and visiting with others in person.
• 1750 Women’s Award jacket: This traditional award jacket is patterned to fit women who are seeking a tapered or athletic fit. It has become a jacket of choice for the female students across the country.
RIPON ATHLETIC riponathletic.com
