A team from supplier STAHLS’ (PPAI 189660) was behind the scenes at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, in April for the televised 2018 NFL Draft. In two minutes or less from the time a player was drafted to when he crossed the stage to shake hands with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, STAHLS’ three-person team created a personalized jersey with the player’s name in the team’s font and color, for Goodell to present to the player.
This was the seventh consecutive year that STAHLS’ Decorating Fulfillment Center (DFC), in Masontown, Pennsylvania, teamed with long-time client and NFL official uniform provider Nike to commemorate the special moment in real time. The process involved extensive preparation and backup from the DFC staff to enable fast, correct printing in the limited footprint of the “jersey room” directly behind the stage.
STAHLS’ crew used pre-spaced names of all prospects created in advance to match each team’s jersey, and two Hotronix heat presses that allowed them to pull and press the correct transfer on the corresponding team jersey as soon as the name was made known. STAHLS’ personalized two jerseys for each draft pick, including the jersey handed to the player on stage by the commissioner, and one that will be used for Panini NFL draft night trading cards.
A 15-year licensee of the NFL, STAHLS’ was brought in by Nike to assist with the on-demand draft personalization when it became the league’s official uniform personalization provider in 2012. STAHLS’ has worked with Nike for more than 20 years to personalize apparel for almost every major sporting league, as well as for the Olympics and the Human Race.
“My seventh NFL Draft is in the books; always an amazing, intense and awesome experience,” says Brent Kisha, director of decorating technology advancement-apparel division. “It takes a large team to pull off such a high-profile event; thank you to everyone who helped make it a success.”