Adam Thielen, left, and Michael Jordan at UNRL's St. Paul headquarters.
BY JOE TOUGAS '86
On one hand, it was likely their careers would merge somehow: Same school, same sense of starting at the bottom and the same surprise success.
What made it inevitable that Adam Thielen ’13 and Michael Jordan ’16 would join forces, however, is their common desire to share in their fortunes.
The result is a line of Adam Thielen sports clothing created by Jordan’s St. Paul-based UNRL clothing company.
Thielen, the Maverick wide receiver who ascended to the ranks of NFL star, and sports clothier Jordan both started their paths at Minnesota State Mankato. Jordan began his clothing business while still in school; UNRL now has sales figures in the millions. Thielen’s football career began with the Mavericks and, after graduating in 2013, led to nine celebrated seasons with the Minnesota Vikings. This year, he signed with the Carolina Panthers for a three-season, $25 million contract.
“Mankato is the reason why I’m where I’m at,” Thielen said. “A lot of the guys in the locker room, they’re not from Division II schools or small schools; when I talk about how much I loved it there and how I wouldn’t change anything they’re kind of shocked. But it is such a great place. What a great community that gets behind what you’re doing.”
What the two of them are doing now is creating a line of clothing to support the foundation Thielen created five years ago.
The Start
Thielen and his wife Caitlin ’14 founded the Thielen Foundation to help disadvantaged youth.
“That’s our main focus: Helping youth reach their full potential,” Thielen said of the Foundation. “We made that mission statement very broad so we could impact in a lot of different areas. And then from there we’ve found our way as to how to best use our resources in time. Now it’s shifted to more of helping youth reach their full potential through sport.”
With a sports emphasis, the Foundation provides kids with equipment, uniforms and other resources that enhance their playtime and social skills.
“We started the foundation and needed apparel for that,” Thielen said. “It made sense [to partner with UNRL] from that perspective, but then when you see the quality and the company he’s building, you want him to do more. From an athlete’s perspective, it was nice to have a clothing brand that really fits your lifestyle.
And, of course, their similar trajectories.
“It just made sense, both being from Minnesota State Mankato,” said Thielen. “[Jordan’s] start to get into the apparel business, compared to my start getting into the NFL—starting from the bottom and working our way up and putting a product out there, whether it be on the field or in his case, this kind of apparel. Something you could be proud of and that other people could be proud of to represent.”
Jordan had been a fan of Thielen’s long before they met, impressed with the Foundation’s work and how it matched his own goals of giving back to the community.
“I remember getting on the phone with Adam for the first time and talking that through and hearing his excitement about wanting to do something. I was shocked that we were on his radar and he was excited about it at that time. Because we were really a small fish in the sea. We still are, compared to an Adidas or a Nike. So that was exciting.”
Jordan, similarly, wants to align his work with good causes. His ambition is to eventually see sales grow into the hundreds of millions, all while contributing to charitable organizations.
“We’re not looking always for athletes and what they do on the field,” Jordan said. “It’s a lot of what they’re doing off the field, and that’s what draws us to Adam. We’re always looking for people striving to use their platform to do some good in the community and really incorporate philanthropy into what they’re doing. … It doesn’t hurt that he’s also a savvy businessman who’s able to come up with really awesome ideas for us.”
The Big Idea
The Adam Thielen line includes hoodies, tees and golf attire quarter-zip shirts, sweatpants, short-sleeve sweatshirts and golf attire for on and off the course. (“I think Adam’s a golfer who makes his dough on the football field,” Jordan said.) It’s important to both men that the items are those that Thielen would actually wear.
“I’m a big believer that I don’t rep stuff that I don’t wear or that I don’t use,” Thielen said. “So it’s all things that I wear on a daily basis. I wear sweatpants and a hoodie to my work every single day… And I’m a huge golfer. I’m on the golf course when I have free time. That mix of athletic wear/golf wear is really fun.
In determining the overall look, they went for style and subtlety—not cartoonish caricatures of Thielen or exclamations like “I’m Thielen It.”
“Adam made it really clear at the beginning he wants stuff to be stuff that he’s going to wear,” Jordan said. “He’s probably not going to wear his face on a T-shirt. So we went a little more premium with it.”
“You've got to look good,” Thielen said. “I always try to bring a lot of swag to what I’m doing no matter what I’m doing—whether I’m on the golf course or at practice or in a game. UNRL allows you to do that in a different type of way. It’s like a classy swag, where you look clean-cut but there’s a little flair to it, a little swag along with that.”
The Early Days
Jordan too said he feels the two are bonded by their underdog stories. In a world of Nikes, UNRL has relatively low visibility—for now.
“We do not have the funding that these big clothing brands have. I didn’t even go to fashion school. So you think of these competitors that we’re going against—it’s either the big Goliaths that have been there for a long time or it’s the VC firms that are backing with a ton of money and they hire all the best designers in the world and they start their brand. So for us to even get to where we’re at now is a similar path, a similar mountain to climb and I think that’s what brings us together.”
Thielen said he’s keen to show off the products to his fellow players and to spread the word and wares of the small Minnesota company with whom he’s doing business.
“Being able to bring it to my teammates, especially now that I’m going to a different team and in an area that probably doesn’t know a whole lot about UNRL and their products—I’m excited for that, I’m excited to bring that brand to them. And I think the guys are going to be super excited about it. Might have some Panther colors in there. That’s what excites me.”
“I’ve always definitely looked up to Adam, seeing just how much adversity he’s overcome to get where he is, nothing but the highest regards,” Jordan says. “Then, the added-on fact that the amount of time he puts in back in the community whether it’s investing his money or time—which is arguably more of a precious asset—he doesn’t take it for granted for sure.”
That underdog story is a good one to share with kids who the Thielens reach through the foundation, Jordan adds.
“He came out of Detroit Lakes and went to Mankato—these are not the most publicized cities in the state,” Jordan said. “And Minnesota’s not the most publicized state in the NFL. He gives a good example of how to get there and can share that story and really inspire a lot of kids.”
Uplifting Logos
There are two logos at play in the line, one being the AT logo that has an arrow involved and speaks to Thielen’s faith and sense of responsibility “with an up arrow pointing to God, who we feel has blessed us, given us an opportunity and platform to give back,” he said. “We always want to remember like, hey, that’s why we’re doing this. That was the inspiration behind the logo.”
Another logo is the word “undrafted,” which Jordan created based on the Thielen legend of not being drafted when he signed on with the NFL only to rise to become a giant in the league.
“I think it’s that mindset that the greats have of I feel like I’m undrafted,” Thielen said. “It kind of puts that chip on your shoulder that says ‘People doubt me and I’m going to prove them wrong’ that’s kind of what that shirt embodies. When you wear that shirt, you’re saying ‘I got a chip on my shoulder because there’s a lot of people that don’t think I should be here right now.”