The Oklahoma Sooners football team made a stylish impression during the College Football Playoff, thanks to custom suits from local business Williams and Lauren.Lauren Warkentine, CEO of Williams and Lauren, said that each student-athlete had the opportunity to design their own suit.”Each student athlete gets to pick out and design their suit however they want it so custom, get to pick our fabric, their liner, their buttons,” Warkentine said.For many young players, this was their first experience wearing a suit. “Several of the players want to have more variety, so they’ll mix it up, especially the younger guys that don’t have any suits already,” Warkentine said. “It’s funny. You forget a lot of them FaceTime their mom. They’re kids. They’re 18 to 23-year-old students.”Some Sooners even added new accessories ahead of the College Football Playoff. Warkentine said that the initiative aims to prepare players for life after college, beyond just looking sharp on game day. “The whole point of this is to set them up for after college more so than the fashion show per se,” she said.Williams and Lauren’s collaboration with the University of Oklahoma extends beyond the football team. “We also work with the women, and I think it’s really neat, specifically women’s basketball and Coach Baranczyk and Coach Gasso with softball are also investing in their women,” Warkentine said.The partnership with the university has significantly impacted the business. “When we got the account, we were a pretty small, new business and it’s been transformative honestly,” Warkentine said. “Getting to work with the university and getting to know and having relationships with the athletes has grown into so much more. We didn’t think we’d get into, with not just football, but across the university and sports and alumni exposure, so it’s really changed the trajectory.”
The Oklahoma Sooners football team made a stylish impression during the College Football Playoff, thanks to custom suits from local business Williams and Lauren.
Lauren Warkentine, CEO of Williams and Lauren, said that each student-athlete had the opportunity to design their own suit.
“Each student athlete gets to pick out and design their suit however they want it so custom, get to pick our fabric, their liner, their buttons,” Warkentine said.
For many young players, this was their first experience wearing a suit.
“Several of the players want to have more variety, so they’ll mix it up, especially the younger guys that don’t have any suits already,” Warkentine said. “It’s funny. You forget a lot of them FaceTime their mom. They’re kids. They’re 18 to 23-year-old students.”
Some Sooners even added new accessories ahead of the College Football Playoff.
Warkentine said that the initiative aims to prepare players for life after college, beyond just looking sharp on game day.
“The whole point of this is to set them up for after college more so than the fashion show per se,” she said.
Williams and Lauren’s collaboration with the University of Oklahoma extends beyond the football team.
“We also work with the women, and I think it’s really neat, specifically women’s basketball and Coach Baranczyk and Coach Gasso with softball are also investing in their women,” Warkentine said.
The partnership with the university has significantly impacted the business.
“When we got the account, we were a pretty small, new business and it’s been transformative honestly,” Warkentine said. “Getting to work with the university and getting to know and having relationships with the athletes has grown into so much more. We didn’t think we’d get into, with not just football, but across the university and sports and alumni exposure, so it’s really changed the trajectory.”
