4 minute read
L2 Brands: From Montana Wilderness to the Dalai Lama, How Brother Launched a Legacy
Q&A with Brandon Wingert, Executive Vice President, Supply Chain & Product Development, L2 Brands
BY BRENDAN SALYARDS MANAGER, ECONOMIC INITIATIVES
Legacy Athletic Apparel was founded in Carlisle in 1992 by Dickinson Law Students Paige Wingert and Mark Landgren. The company began by making vintage baseball caps with historic athletic logos found in old college yearbooks. In 2018, Legacy was sold to Dominus Capital, a private equity firm. Dominus Capital merged Legacy with League Collegiate Apparel, a collegiate apparel business based in suburban Philadelphia, to form L2 Brands L2 Brands is headquartered in Hanover, Pennsylvania, where it operates a large apparel decoration facility.
Five years on from the merger, L2 Brands is continuing to grow and working to integrate two more product brands that were recently acquired: Ouray Sportswear and Locale Outdoor. We sat down with Brandon Wingert, Executive Vice President, Supply Chain & Product Development to check in on L2 Brands recent success.
Q: Could you talk a little bit about the decision to locate in Hanover and what has kept you here?
My brothers and I all graduated from South Western High School and were raised in Hanover since 1972. Legacy was born around the time that Hanover Shoe was closing, and we were able to hire some of their former employees. The skilled labor and strong work ethic in this area has been key to our success. In fact, just today we had an employee retire who had worked at Hanover Shoe and then was with us for 26 years. Our motto has been “Work Hard and Be Nice” and that embodies the spirit of the people around here.
Q: Could you talk a little bit about the merger with League Apparel and the impact that has made on L2 Brands?
When we merged with League Apparel they had two production facilities. One was outside of Philadelphia and the other in El Salvador they called League Central America. We decided to relocate the decoration operations from Philadelphia to Hanover due to the labor talent here and our efficient factory layout. Having domestic production gives us the ability to quickly turnaround orders. We still have the facility in El Salvador. That allows for some vertical integration, and they can handle embroidery and printing orders that aren’t as time sensitive.
Q: Could you describe your operations here in Hanover?
At peak season, we have about 400 employees here in York County. We work three shifts that work Monday through Friday. Our operation in Hanover includes embroidery and printing for hats, apparel, and home décor. We have a whole product development team including graphic designers and product merchandisers as well as teams working in warehouse, production and shipping, plus all the operations support folks, like IT, human resources and finance.
Q: What was the moment that you realized the business had made it big?
We’ve grown from Paige’s basement into a global company. Seeing people wearing our hats in Europe or recently on a fishing trip deep in the Montana wilderness has been a great feeling and a connection to back home. We still get a kick out of seeing celebrities sporting Legacy like Blake Shelton, Kenny Chesney, Joanna Gaines, Liam Neeson, Patrick Dempsey, and even the Dalai Lama!
Q: What do you like most about your job?
What I like most is working with my team and helping to build a strong culture. We’ve built a great team of talented, competitive, fun-loving people; folks want to stay here. I’m ever grateful for that. Paige and I are still very hands-on with the design of new hats. It gives us a personal touch in that aspect of the business.
