Aaron Judge was the AL MVP in 2022, hammering 62 homeruns last season. This record breaking season earned him a mind blowing 9-year, $360 million dollar deal this past winter. Since then, the 6'7" outfielder has had time to relax before kicking off spring training and has made a number of appearances at New York Knick games, Rangers games, and marathons. During these events he has consistently worn the same hat in public.
Founder of Siegelman Stable, Max Siegelman. Image via Siegelman Stable IG
Siegelman Stable, founded by Max Siegelman, is a family owned business fusing harness racing and a luxury sports fashion brand where a portion of all proceeds goes back to numerous therapy groups. The brand has paid tribute to his fathers stable, the Robert Siegelman Racing Stable, which was established in 1982. During the heat of the pandemic, Max invested a few hundred dollars to embroider the family logo on some hats and shirts after realizing his dad only had one hat and one jacket from the 80's hanging around. When Max posted what started as a personal project, it suddenly became a blossoming business in pop culture.
Artist, Future Hendrix pictured wearing Siegelman Stable, Image via Siegelman Stable IG
A few months ago we had the pleasure of interviewing Max on our show. He breaks down the importance of making genuine relationships, exclusivity, discipline and more. "I started with only $200 to make hats and shirts" Siegelman stated, "I had a family member, who wasn't my parents or siblings say 'who the heck would wear a hat that says Siegelman stable?' I remember I didn't say anything at that moment and it motivated me to take action even to this day." Two years since Max has started this project of rebranding his dad's racing stable , he has proved many wrong as it has been worn by some of the most prominent figures in sports & music. The list includes Future, Justin Bieber, Kendall Jenner, Kane Brown, Post Malone, Dwayne Wade and of course Aaron Judge.
Rapper Post Malone pictured wearing Siegelman Stable, Image via Siegelman Stable IG
The brand has even been featured in One37pm, Barstool Sports Podcasts BFF's and even launched an official campaign with San Antonio Spurs in fall of 2022. Pretty good for a two person company that's only two years in. Oh we forgot to mention, this is still a part time gig. Talk about hustle. Also, its all going towards a good cause as he recently donated over $10k to equine therapy groups at the conclusion of 2022.
Dwayne Wade (left) pictured wearing Siegelman Stable, Image via Siegelman Stable IG
When we asked the 31 year old entrepreneur how he would describe the company he admitted he has seen it as both a streetwear and luxury brand and believes any clothing brand could be both today. His hope was initially to go for the "early supreme days" aesthetic. He likes how his project is limited and one a kind and it's a specific community that wears it. He described it as a "If you know, you know" kind of attitude he hopes to create and loves the networking opportunities it can possibly even create for his customers. When asked if what's more important exclusivity or affordability he quickly responded, the answer "both even though that just sounds like the politically correct answer, it's true." He elaborated saying he received complaints on how quickly his hats were selling out so he increased the quantity for customers to get a shot at purchasing online. However, Max discussed the importance of resell value and if he overproduces then that value on secondary markets will go down. More importantly he wants to create a tight knit community with one of a kind projects.
Justin Bieber pictured wearing Siegelman Stable, Image via Siegelman Stable IG
Overall, one lesson we took away from Siegelman was his ability to create genuine relationships. You would think this racing horse logo got on your favorite athletes hats because of numerous ads on social media. But that's not the case as not a dime has been spent on marketing and everything you see has been fully organic and through word of mouth.
Kendall Jenner pictured wearing Siegelman Stable, Image via Siegelman Stable IG
So next time you see, Aaron Judge sitting courtside, know the story behind it and the cause it supports. Please listen to our full conversation with Max on all streaming platforms. For me personally, I wear a lot of hats but this one is my favorite right now. As a Red Sox fan it is hard for me to admit, but Aaron Judge has good taste.