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Description:seller of vintage sports apparel reproductions
Startup:$30,000 to $45,000 in 1998
2004 projectedsales: between $4 million and $5 million
Taking off: In1998, Atlanta bar owner Andy Hyman boarded a plane for a New YorkCity vacation, hoping for some relaxation and new possibilities.Tired of the late hours at his bar, he was ready for a change.Little did he know, inspiration would hit before the plane eventouched the ground. While browsing through a catalog, he spotted areplica of a Montreal Canadiens hockey sweater. Confident that astore selling reproductions of retro sports merchandise from famousand sometimes extinct teams would be a hit among sentimental sportsfans, Hyman decided to open a kiosk, dubbed DistantReplays, in Atlanta, where no such stores existed.
The bigleagues: The kiosk overflowed with jerseys, hats and dugoutjackets for a year and a half until Hyman was able to expand intoan 800-square-foot store. Now he has enough space to welcomevisiting teams and host special appearances by athletes like MagicJohnson. Though his store, with its hundreds of logos, has become amust-see location for sports fans, he does all he can to furtherdevelop the business. He sponsors local teams, forms partnershipswith sports agents, and even sends limousines to transport playersfrom their hotels to the store.
Home run:Hyman found his niche on the upswing when rappers like Big Boi(from Outkast) inadvertently doubled the company's sales bysporting jerseys in their music videos. Distant Replays may bemaking millions, but there's nothing more valuable than keepingsports history alive. Says Hyman, "I get pleasure from seeingpeople get excited about buying [the apparel of] their favoriteplayers from when they were little."
