Brownfield Sports
Custom Design Screen Print and Embroidery
Officially Licensed for University of Illinois
The Brownfield Sports story began in 1990 when lovebirds Mark and Kristi Brownfield finally developed the courage to go out and start their own print shop. Mark had always had the entrepreneurial mindset while growing up working for his dad at a local welding shop but Kristi (Mrs. Brownfield Sports) needed much more convincing. They started manufacturing team apparel for their local area softball teams "on the side" and noticed the demand for custom teamwork apparel and decided to push all their chips and go "all-in". The Brownfield's home garage was quickly converted into a small print shop when their oldest son, Ryne, was at the toddling age of 1 and the family was expecting their second son, Matt. On December 31st, 1990 the local custom teamwork and apparel business Brownfield Sports was born, with Matt coming shortly after :)
Many of the first orders for Brownfield Sports were ordered on restaurant napkins, the back of lineup sheets, sides of cardboard boxes or Kristi's personal favorite...writing it on the palm of her hand (some things never change). The business slowly began to out-grow the home garage and Mark and Kristi decided that in order to expand they needed more space and moved to a commercial/warehouse building on Poplar Street in Urbana. With the move and the growth of the business, they decided they needed more help and decided to hire their first full-time life-long employees...sons Ryne and Matt. The small family print shop then expanded and added custom embroidery to its list of custom apparel services. The shop underwent a major remodel to include a small storefront and retail space in addition to their manufacturing area with the help of local friends and family. In July 2001, the family decided to pursue a lease at the local Lincoln Square Mall in Urbana and added officially licensed University of Illinois apparel to their now much larger retail area and catered to local area high school sports teams and booster clubs. After thirteen years at Lincoln Square Mall in Urbana, the company decided to move to the popular southwest corner of Lincoln and University in Urbana. Shortly after the move, an unexpected tragedy of the loss of our founder, husband and father, Mark at the age of 51, caused the company to shift its focus and relocate to our current location at 1212 E. University Avenue Suite B in Urbana, next to Ambucs Park.
The company continues to cater to local area high school sports teams, booster clubs and business with custom screen print and embroidery apparel while remaining actively involved in the community. Kristi (Mrs. Brownfield Sports) and Matt head the embroidery and screen print departments, respectively, along with the daily activities of managing the store. If you stop by the store you may also see our other fellow full-time life-long employees Cubbie (yellow lab) and our most recent addition to the team, Maverick (Ryne's 19 month-old son). Good help is hard to find so we apologize if you find the occasional stray blonde dog hair or small spot of drool but just think of it as us saying "hello". The family owned and operated store continues to remain loyal to its core values of friends and family. Many of our "customers" have been with us from the beginning of our journey and have become apart of the Brownfield Sports family. We invite you to stop by and see us today if you want to have a quote for custom apparel for your business, a sample for your sports team, share your latest family story, pet a dog or hold a baby, whatever you want or need we will do our best to make your experience with us an enjoyable one. We look forward to building a relationship with you and making you apart of our team and family at Brownfield Sports. Thank you for taking the time to check us out! See you soon!
