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United State of Indiana, a 12-year-old company known for its locally themed T-shirts, will open its first physical store this week.
With the store in the Monon Station retail center along East 54th Street, the firm plans to sell more than T-shirts, according to company founder Graham Brown. Billed as an apparel and gift shop, United State of Indiana will offer posters, pillows, socks, jewelry, pint glasses and other accessories.
The company’s T-shirt line includes officially licensed designs related to Pizza King, Indianapolis Motor Speedway and the Indiana State Fair.
Brown and co-owner Grant Gilman decided to explore the idea of opening a store in 2022, and they liked the idea of returning to 1051 E. 54th St., where the company once rented office space in the back of Vibes, a bygone record store.
The Monon Station building is now split into two parts, with vintage clothing store Lux & Ivy occupying Suite B on the east side. Lux & Ivy owner Sara Baldwin is a friend of the United State of Indiana owners, Brown said.
“We let Sara know, ‘Hey, if the tenant next to you ever decides to move out, make sure that we’re first in line because we’d love to have that space.’ Luckily, a few months later that’s exactly what happened,” Brown said. “We were just waiting for the ‘Goldilocks’ scenario where everything felt right for us.”
Blind Zebra, a sales coaching firm, moved from Suite A of 1051 E. 54th St. to 5420 College Ave., Suite 200. Jackie Nicholas, owner and property manager of Monon Station, is United State of Indiana’s landlord.
The 1,900-square-foot USI store is planning grand-opening festivities on March 3-4, when the shop will be open 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. The store’s regular hours of operation will be 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday, and noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday.
Brown, a Bluffton native and Anderson University alum, launched United State of Indiana in 2011, shipping online orders from a single shelf of T-shirts in his bedroom.
The company now owns a print shop in Terre Haute, where co-owner Gilman lives.
United State of Indiana’s vertical logo is made up of stripes suggestive of the U.S. flag accompanied by the shape of Indiana. The logo originated with a hip-hop group, Anderson’s Most Wanted, that included Brown as a member in his college days.
Beyond appearing on T-shirts that established United State of Indiana as a growing company, the logo is seen on more than 50,000 stickers that have been distributed with USI merchandise.
“Every order, whether it’s in person or online, gets a free flag sticker,” Brown said. “It’s been one of our best marketing strategies.”
Brown said he’s witnessed a transformation from Indianapolis residents routinely disparaging the city to expressions of pride.
“We want to be the rallying flag for the ‘local’ movement, which so many people in Indy are so into,” Brown said. “I was lucky to start the company when I think that was really picking up steam.”
Brown said United State of Indiana will launch a new collection of Indianapolis-themed shirts this weekend.
“The world definitely may be going in the direction of bigger corporations and more global corporations, but we can pull in the other direction and say, ‘Let’s go back. The days of the Mom & Pop do not need to be over,’ ” Brown said.
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