The explosive trend of throwback sport retro jerseys is one that most all have noticed, and will continue too, with sales grossing over $25 million last year. These jerseys have created one of the biggest trends setting crazes in the past ten years and are fashioned by most all-big hip-hop stars across the country; from BET to MTV. Mitchell and Ness, which is a Philadelphia sporting goods company that produces thousands of authentic jerseys from seasons in past and future, of all sports, has certainly set the industry standard in clothing. In addition to producing authentic team jerseys, the company manufactures exact replicas of those worn by individual players. The founder of the most respected jersey dealer, the popularity among rap aficionados, as well as what the trend represents for regular consumers in the "streets" are all things that will let you in on the universal fashion of throwback jerseys.
Founder and CEO Peter Capolino had no intentions of his company Mitchell & Ness starting an "urbangear" revolution for hip-hop community. In fact the Philadelphia Inquirer said "Peter Capolino couldn't tell Jay-Z from J. Crew. He thought Puff Daddy was a new kind of self-rising pastry and Fabolous was a typo for the word that means incredible." Capolino and associates have taken their company in two years from 8 employees and $2.8 million in revenues to 55 employees and $25 million in revenue. Capolino now has licensed agreements with the National Basketball Association, the National Hockey League and Major League Baseball to make replica jerseys, by just wanting a way to compete with major sporting-good chains. With jerseys such as the 1971-72 Wilt Chamberlain or 1964 Jim Brown Cleveland Browns" jersey, Capolino states "I do not create sports fashion. I'm not Nike or Reebok, what I do is re-create totally accurate history. The more history I create, the more these guys hunger for it.
