How a mistake, a free shirt, and a first touchdown put our tiny startup on national television
We opened our Shopify store on September 23rd. Sales were slow — we're a small family startup, and that's just the reality of building something from scratch. But we believed in what we were making: gear built around a rivalry phrase so perfectly Wisconsin that people couldn't help but laugh and nod the moment they read it.
So when the Green Bay Packers hosted the Chicago Bears on October 11th, we decided to take things into our own hands.
Setting Up on a Beautiful Fall Morning
It took some logistical hustle to make it happen. We found a friendly landowner near Lambeau who gave us a spot, loaded up the car, and were on-site with coffee in hand by 8 a.m. on a stunning fall morning — the kind of day that makes you remember why you love Wisconsin. Warm, sunny, eventually pushing into the 80s. Perfect. T-shirt. Weather.
Caption: "Game day setup outside Lambeau — yes, that's a bear on the table. We were ready for the Bears." 🐻
Traffic was great. Fans stopped, read our phrase, and the reaction was always the same: a laugh, a smile, and "where do I get one of those?" We sold shirts, had great conversations, and felt for the first time like this thing was really real.
The Last Customers Before Kickoff
At 11:30 a.m. — just 30 minutes before the noon kickoff — a young couple approached our table. Friendly, excited, clearly ready for game day. They bought two shirts. The husband, wearing his Jordan Love jersey, decided to run one back to the car before heading in.
He came back empty-handed. Left both shirts behind at the car.
We laughed. Handed him a free one right off the table. And as he pulled it on, someone joked:
"Now we just need a Lambeau Leap out of this."
Then Lightning Struck.
First touchdown of the game. Jordan Love drops back and launches a bomb downfield. Christian Watson reaches up, hauls it in — and without hesitation, launches himself into the stands.
Right. Next. To. Them.
The Lambeau Leap. On the first touchdown. On national television. With our shirt in the crowd.
Caption: "Christian Watson's Lambeau Leap on the first touchdown — and yes, that's our shirt, front and center. October 11, Packers vs. Bears. Broadcast timestamp: 5:51."
What Happened Next
Our phones didn't stop. The store didn't stop. What had been a slow-building startup had its moment — and we were standing in a parking lot outside Lambeau Field watching it happen in real time on someone's phone.
A free shirt. A joke. A first touchdown catch. And suddenly, You're Starting to Illinois Me™ wasn't just a phrase on a table outside a football game.
It was on national television.
What It Means
We didn't plan the Lambeau Leap. We didn't manufacture the moment. We just showed up early, made something people loved, gave a free shirt to a guy who accidentally left his at the car, and made a joke about what could happen.
Sometimes the rivalry gives back.
If you're a Packers fan, a Wisconsin fan, or just someone who has ever looked at an Illinois driver in traffic and deeply, deeply understood this phrase — this one's for you.
👉 Wear the shirt that was there.
You're Starting to Illinois Me.™ — Built by Wisconsin fans, for every fan who's ever felt it.