17 minute read
Grit: How Standard Hat Works has become the Second-Longest Operating Store in Waco
by Kourtney David, Contributing Writer
When Cameron Morris purchased Standard Hat Works he didn’t know how to shape a hat, much less have a passion for it. Morris was actually involved in the construction industry and found the business as his way out. He found out over years of hard work shaping his craft that like any good building, a business needs a strong foundation – tough, durable, built to last.
“All this other stuff can be changed out later…your foundation has to be set and solid,” he said. “And once it’s solid, then you’re right, then you can move up.”
Now, more than 100 years after its inception, the company is stronger than ever. It’s a destination location among travelers and country music artists and a thriving example of the Waco artisan community’s undying willpower.
Who is Standard Hat Works?
The company starts with a blank slate on each hat, allowing each person who walks in the door to create their own vision. Inside the store there are countless colors of felt left open and flat, waiting to be shaped, trimmed and finished for the right customer.
Standard Hat Works’ seven employees take a hat’s raw fur body, stiffen the felt into the customer’s desired shape over a wood block, sew in sweat bands and liners, and add finishing touches to order, all in house. It’s the real deal, more than just styling a hat, Morris said.
“We basically take a felt hat from start to finish,” Morris said.
Some customers walk out of the store with a custom hat in two hours if they find the right fit, while others take time to find the perfect color, shape and brim size.
Standard Hat Works also cleans and renovates felt hats, breaking them down, washing them, scrubbing them, replacing sweat bands and getting them as clean as new before remaking the hat to “try to bring it back to life,” he said.
They also sell a line of straw hats, again starting with the body and trimming and shaping them.
“We don’t sell boots, we don’t sell jeans, we don’t sell shirts or anything like that,” Morris said. “Not saying we won’t … this has been a hat company for 100-plus years here in Waco.”
Background & History of the Second-Longest Operating Store in Waco
According to a Waco History account, William Gross founded Standard Hat Works in New York City in 1909. Gross, a Hungarian immigrant, would sell hats off his head on the street in New York before he came to Waco in 1915 and opened his own storefront at 622 Washington Ave.
In 1936, Gross hired Bill Martin – the actor Steve Martin’s uncle – as an apprentice who would learn the craft at the shop. Martin worked under the founder until the 1940s when Gross decided to retire.
Martin became the new owner and hired Doug Eastland a few years later. The two worked together into the early ‘80s until Martin’s retirement. Eastland then took ownership of the business. While under Eastland’s ownership, the hat business was booming, thanks to the popularity of the cowboy culture spurred by films, like “Urban Cowboy.” Standard Hat Works made hats for George Strait and Garth Brooks and even crowned the heads of Oprah Winfrey and David Letterman. The Waco History account says because making hats was a heat-intensive process, Eastland had concerns about the fire hazard at the Washington Avenue location. He relocated the business to 422 W. Waco Drive. Ironically, in 1993, the new facility and all but one piece of hat-making equipment were destroyed in a fire.
Although Eastland was still able to sell hats, revenue dropped off significantly and he sold the business to Richard Dick in 1997. Eastland is no longer in the hatmaking business, but remains in Waco as a real estate agent.
For nearly a decade, Standard Hat Works remained dormant. The company reemerged in 2006 when Lenny Lawson bought it, replaced the equipment and moved it again, this time to 1826 Circle Road. Lawson began making hats again, though they had lost some of their popularity since the ‘80s.
Morris purchased the company in 2013, but was forced to relocate from Circle Road when the Texas Department of Transportation widened Interstate 35 in 2016.
The store’s current home, acquired in 2016, at 1304 N. New Road, formerly held the Piazza Brothers western store.
“We kind of had a shop back there already set up, and then this showroom was already here,” Morris said. “So we just renovated it, kind of made it our own.”
The shop today displays many newspaper clippings and photos from its beginnings. It even holds an old functional cash register with a crank handle, which Morris said came from the original store.
When Morris bought the business in 2013, he didn’t know the first thing about making a hat.
He worked for a custom home builder while attending McLennan Community College and was a carpenter while attending Texas Tech University.
“I really liked working with the customers,” he said. “I really liked that one on one, you know, kind of getting something that they really enjoyed, and they were really excited about.”
When Morris finished college, he entered the commercial construction industry and was good at it, he said. Eventually he lost passion for the job, and instead of writing contracts, bidding work and negotiating with subcontractors he wanted to “make something cool and try to make some money at it.”
“It just felt like a constant fight every day,” he said. “And it was just making me a very, very cynical and mean person … I wanted something completely different, completely not in the realm of what I was doing.”
He heard Standard Hat Works was for sale and after a month of contemplation he reached out to the owner. They agreed on a price and six months later, in June 2013, they closed on the deal and Morris got to work.
“That was it. We did everything,” he said. “We waited on everybody. She did all the selling, kind of helped the customers, answered the phone. And I did all the books, all the business stuff, all the making, all the shaping, all the cleaning.”
For at least the first six years, it was just himself and one other employee, Catherine, who had worked under the previous owner.
“That was it. We did everything,” he said. “We waited on everybody. She did all the selling, kind of helped the customers, answered the phone. And I did all the books, all the business stuff, all the making, all the shaping, all the cleaning.”
Morris said they hustled for the first two years, trying to develop a “foolproof formula” for how the shop would operate. On top of owning the business he had never made a hat before, but he said he had to learn quickly.
“I sucked at the beginning … I mean I felt sorry for the first few people I shaped hats for because I had never shaped a hat, and I never even tried,” he said. “And trust me, it was discouraging at some points.”
When Morris bought Standard Hat Works the hat industry was already a difficult market, and on top of the learning curve for the craft, scrounging up the money to run the business was no easy task. “It was hard to put it together because nobody thought anybody was going to wear a hat,” he said. “They were just like, ‘Who wears hats? Who cleans hats? I mean, how are you going to support a family, all this stuff, all this overhead and everything? And, you know, who’s going to buy from you?’”
Morris said his doubters had a point – felt hats weren’t as popular in 2013 as they were in their 1980s heyday. The market was soft and the cash flow was slow, and one of the biggest struggles starting out was breaking the stigma that only cowboys wore hats.
“Well I can’t wear a hat unless I’m a cowboy, unless I’m riding a horse to work every day,” he said. “You know, they almost feel like they have to apologize for wearing a hat. … The women’s market back when I bought it, I mean, I couldn’t give a hat to a woman back then, and now they’re 50% of our business.”
Morris credits the reemergence of hats in mainstream fashion and pop culture as his ticket back into a booming economy. Through long nights and determination, interest in the shop bloomed again when it caught popularity among many country artists and musicians – women and men alike –who don’t fit the mold of the stereotypical horse-riding hat wearer.
Serving the Texas Country Music Scene
Texas country music legend Johnny Lee stopped by Standard Hat Works in 2014 on his way to a show at Melody Ranch. Morris said they struck a deal: if he could custom make a new hat in time for his show that night, Lee would wear it on stage.
“And we didn’t have one,” Morris said. “You know, at the time we were just ordering them and making them as we went.”
They found a felt body in the shop they could work with and made the hat in 6 hours, and Lee kept his promise. Morris said Lee became the first of many music stars he befriended over the years, stopping in several times when he’d play in Waco.
Kyle Park, another Texas singer and songwriter, was the first artist to pour out support for the shop and spread the word, Morris said. Park had done work with the previous owner, but their relationship grew quickly after meeting for the first time when Park was in town for a show.
Roger Creager was another big supporter early on, Morris said, and Standard Hat Works went on to make hats for the band Midland, Jason Boland, Sunny Sweeney, Cody Jinks and many other musicians.
“It just kind of organically grew … we never really got into paying people to do stuff,” Morris said.
“It was more like, hope you enjoy it and if you enjoy it, wear it. Spread the word. If you don’t, don’t.”
Morris said he wanted every artist who came in to be able to come in and have the same experience as anyone else, picking out their hats and shaping them how they wanted without feeling bombarded. His attitude proved successful, becoming a destination location among artists and fans in the scene.
“We want it to be a really comfortable experience, not just for them, but for anybody that comes in,” he said.
Around the same time as the business’ boom in the music industry, there were many wider cultural movements surrounding the “country feel” that progressed the success of the hat industry.
“Not only do you have musicians wearing them, but you had this whole Texas country scene blow up…professional bull riding has taken off…COVID, people are moving out to the country and wanting to grow their own stuff and be farmers now, you know, which is great,” he said.
How has the business persevered so long? Grit.
Tenacity and stubbornness are the only things Morris said he can think of that kept the second-oldest business in Waco running for so long.
“When I was thinking about buying it, you know, that’s one of the things that kind of caught my attention,” Morris said. “It’s like how, through so many recessions and depressions and all this stuff, that this hat shop remained in Waco? … I don’t know, it kind of fascinated me a little bit.”
When he considered buying the store, Morris said a driving factor was his desire to maintain its history and reputation. He knew operating the business and learning something new would be difficult, but he believed in the craft and put in the hard work.
By focusing on producing a quality product and treating each customer the same, the hat company slowly grew from stagnation.
“It was definitely a trickle. It was not overnight,” Morris said.
Although hat sales were at a low when Morris took over the business, anyone in the western wear business knows hats are one of the hardest things to get now, he said. After hitting a peak in the ‘80s, many hat-making businesses were forced to shut down, leaving the industry to one felt body supplier operating in the United States.
Morris said the hat industry is a small, tight community, and with a shortage of labor and a shortage of supplies, everybody is overrun. But, the shop perseveres.
Fans and loyal customers come from all over – the United States, Canada, Europe, Central America and even Australia – to have a hat custom fitted and made in store.
“We had a customer who came in yesterday from Phoenix. He flew in,” Morris said. “They were going to Arkansas so they flew into Dallas, drove down here, picked up his hat, and then drove to Arkansas.”
Putting out quality product and customer service is what keeps loyal customers coming back, even when the economy is bad, Morris said.
“They’re going to buy them from someone else or they’re going to buy them from me,” he said. “So we hope that we make a good enough product that it doesn’t matter, even in recessionary times, you know, we’re still going to survive.”
What makes a Standard Hat Works hat so special? What do people come back for?
They could have their hat shipped, but people drive from all over the country for the Standard Hat Works experience, Morris said. He runs a tight shop, keeping the showroom neat, candles lit and music playing. Anyone can buy a felt hat at a department store, but Morris views each customer who walks into the store as a connection to happen, rather than a sale.
“I always preach to my people quality product and customer service,” he said. “So, between those two, we try to make a great experience for a person that’s wanting a custom hat.”
The experience starts with tight quality control, striving to use the best materials at every step of the way. Morris sources all the felt bodies from Tennessee and the liners and sweat bands come from the Northeastern United States, keeping the operation as “Made in America” as possible.
Morris’ demand for high quality in his hats can carry a price tag of $400 to $500, but the final product far outweighs low-quality, mass-produced hats. There are enough of those out there, he said.
“You know, we could go out there and buy a bunch of cheap stuff and make a bunch of cheap stuff, and that’s just not who we’re trying to be,” Morris said.
“We try to keep it more artisan, more handmade, more one-on-one.”
If it isn’t the quality of the hat that brings customers back, the personal touch that goes into its creation will. Harping on quality products and genuine customer service is what keeps loyal fans coming back from all over the country, Morris said.
He added that people who come through the shop know him and his employees because they shake each person’s hand and give them an experience they won’t forget. They work with each person who comes through to find the right shape, color, size and style of hat that fits their needs, and they treat each one of them the same.
“I think when people are spending that much money on a hat, that you kind of almost have to give them that…It’s not just about putting a hat on somebody’s head,” he said.
Waco’s Artisan Economy
Growing up in Waco, Morris said he watched Waco’s transition in the last 10 years as it grew into a more local-focused community. Its convenient location halfway between Dallas and Austin attracts some business, but Morris credits the RGIII era of Baylor football and Magnolia’s explosion as key events that put Waco on the map.
He said the city has always been an easy place with a fair cost of living, a nice place for Baylor students to stick around or for people to start their own businesses. There are a lot of new faces these days, but Morris said he still sees a lot of the same old faces he grew up around.
“Waco’s always been about helping each other,” he said. “Relationships are always a big thing because, you know, that’s how you got your business. People in Waco, they want to go, ‘oh well, I know so-and-so over there. You go see him and tell him I sent you,’ kind of thing.”
Morris said his best advice for artisans looking to build a long-lasting business is to see the vision, believe in it and have confidence to take the leap. It’s going to be hard and the doubt will linger, but putting in the work is the only way to make the business sustain, he said.
“You have to be able to sacrifice and do whatever it takes to make it happen,” he said. “And that means anything that it takes and everything that it takes. I mean, you may not sleep for weeks. You may not eat very good for a while.”
Anyone coming in and looking to start a business may have all the money in the beginning to get it off the ground, but the money only goes so far, Morris said. Standard Hat Works went years without making a profit, Morris said, and he questioned himself many times on if buying the business was the right idea.
However, the validation of building the company the right way – with hard work and tenacity – outweighs the fear of failure in the end.
“I think if you’re determined you’ll find a way to make it work. I mean, it’s up to the person,” Morris said. “I think that you can make it. You may have to sacrifice more than what you want to or more than what you expected to, but if you’re determined and have your head in the right spot and you’re looking at moving forward then yeah, you can make it.”
The Future for Standard Hat Works
Standard Hat Works has been operating in Waco for more than a century, and it’s not stopping anytime soon, Morris said.
The business is opening a second location for the first time, in Nashville, with one of the seven employees there and Morris traveling back and forth often to get things started. He said the new location will only have a showroom and all hats will still be made at home in Waco and shipped to the new location.
Morris said the company has never had a huge marketing budget, but his team is working on some marketing strategies to push its name out even more after having success relying on word of mouth. He said he’s appreciative of his customers along the way, artists or otherwise, who promoted the business pro bono.
Standard Hat Works
1304 N New Rd
Waco, TX 76710
standardhatworks.myshopify.com
(254) 754-4287
