"I got let go from my job in 2021 as part of a companywide reduction. At the time, I had been working in football product management at Wilson Sporting Goods, overseeing football products and working with teams, factories, and leather suppliers across college and professional football. Wherever I went, the same topic of discussion came up: What's the best way to break in a football?"
"I had been preparing footballs for years as an add-on service within my role for select teams. During COVID, that service expanded when equipment managers didn't have access to their facilities; they would ask for help, and I'd stay late, come in on weekends, or use downtime to prep footballs so they were ready to use. Over time, I learned how leather behaves in different weather, which products hold up, how to customize prep options to meet quarterbacks' needs, and which processes are duplicative."
"Every football goes through a customized, multi-step process I run Gridiron Football Prep out of my home in New Jersey with my wife, Emily, who handles product development and business operations. The workload is intense. At any given time, there can be hundreds of footballs in different stages of preparation - brushed, conditioned, balmed, mudded, and drying. When a football leaves the factory, it's missing key elements that prevent it from performing at the highest level. Quarterbacks may find it too"
Gridiron Football Prep launched after a 2021 layoff to provide customized, multi-step preparation for footballs used by quarterbacks at college and professional levels. The company operates from a New Jersey home and manages hundreds of footballs through brushing, conditioning, balming, mudding, and drying stages. Factory-finished balls often lack elements needed for optimal performance, so targeted prep improves leather behavior, grip, and feel across weather conditions. Experience with teams, factories, and leather suppliers shaped product selection and processes. The service expanded during COVID when equipment managers lost facility access, and prep options are tailored to quarterback preferences.
Read at Business Insider
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