{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Transistor","provider_url":"https://transistor.fm","author_name":"The Marketing B-Sides","title":"Track #27: Connor Hitchcock - Building a Brand People Feel: How Thoughtful Design and Human Behavior Drive Growth","html":"","width":"100%","height":180,"duration":2525,"description":"Homefield Apparel CEO and co-founder Connor Hitchcock sits down with Tom Hootman right as college football season kicks into high gear. From packing orders by hand in 2017 to building a powerhouse vintage collegiate brand licensed with over 150 universities, Connor shares the authentic story behind Homefield's meteoric rise.\nWe dive into what happens when an underdog brand's favorite team starts dominating, how Homefield navigates its brand voice without alienating national college football fans, and why digging through dusty university archives creates apparel people genuinely love. Connor breaks down his original grassroots marketing playbook, explaining how reaching out to niche college football bloggers, DMing 30 super-fans per school, and sending free shirts with zero strings attached built an untouchable foundation of brand equity.\nConnor also shares hard-learned lessons about paid media limitations, explaining why performance ads are a maintenance tool rather than a core growth driver for Homefield. We talk about modern uniform trends, physical retail expansion with their Kirkwood store, and why Homefield strictly bans AI from their creative process to protect human storytelling.","thumbnail_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/36PIZanV9DclOom8ilMHsbH0ksenNpAuppakMWXiYOA/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:400/h:400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS9lNjEy/NmYyMzZhYWM2OTE1/NjM3NmY3YzhlOTM3/MTg1Ni5wbmc.webp","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300}