"Founded by Dean Wegner, Founder and CEO, Authentically American gets its apparels manufactured by a whole list of US contract manufacturers. The company’s T-shirts are manufactured in Texas, while its hats are made in New Jersey, socks in North Carolina, and athletic jerseys in Georgia. Overall, the company has facilities in 12 states across the country."

Authentically American-a Nashville-based apparel-making startup aims to revive the ‘Made in America’ label by reshoring a bulk of the production of custom branded garments. Currently, the company provides US-made custom branded apparels and merchandise to only corporate, educational, and nonprofit clients around the country. A $8 billion per year business, the company has posted growth rates of over 300 per cent each of the past couple years. 

Founded by Dean Wegner, Founder and CEO, Authentically American gets its apparels manufactured by a whole list of US contract manufacturers. The company’s T-shirts are manufactured in Texas, while its hats are made in New Jersey, socks in North Carolina, and athletic jerseys in Georgia. Overall, the company has facilities in 12 states across the country.

The origin 

Authentically American was born out of Wegner’s curiosity over Procter & Gamble’s acquisitions of apparel brands across the country. His further digging into the issue led him to discover the huge potential that corporate and organisation-branded apparel business had in the US. He then decided to quit his sales job at P&G and move on to Mars Inc. 

Another factor that drove him towards this business was his military career. In  2012 along with a partner he purchased an 18-year-old company called Omega Apparel. The company made uniforms including trousers, skirts, and slacks for the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, and Coast Guard. However, it didn’t satisfy his ultimate desire to launch an iconic brand and create jobs. Wegner sold his share of the company to his partner and launched Authentically American in July 2017.

Altruistic initiatives 

The company progressed well in a short period. Besides its regular customers, the company also supplies apparels to universities like Belmont, Vanderbilt and Lipscomb, and a number of charities. They believe in giving back to the society whatever it receives from it. 

In addition, Wegner is also committed to continuing to serve his brothers and sisters in arms. His company donates 10 per cent of proceeds to charities supporting U.S. military veterans, first responders, and their families. That combination garnered them some healthy publicity, including an appearance on Fox & Friends. While the company’s original business plan was to stick to the B2B side of things for a number of years, that publicity has prompted them to recently launch a consumer brand as well. According to Wegner, this will help the company accelerate its future growth.