MBB: Grab Your Own Piece of History
6/26/2021 4:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Baylor, Artsman Offering Collectible Items From Final Four Court
By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
Believe it or not, your memories of the Baylor men's basketball team's historic 86-70 win over Gonzaga in this year's NCAA national championship game will start to fade over time.
Through a partnership with Baylor Athletics, Kelly Smith and Chris Rose want to help Baylor fans hold on to those memories a little longer and even share them with generations to come.
Next week, Smith's and Rose's Cincinnati-based Artsman company will release an introductory collection of commemorative items crafted from the actual game floor that was used for the Final Four at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
Ranging from bottle openers and keychains to wood blocks and frames, all the way up to executive trays and customized coffee tables, no two items in the collection are exactly the same.
"We wholeheartedly believe that when somebody picks up an item and has all the details, they go back in time and they relive that memory, and they tell the story," said Smith, one of the Artsman partners and the Creative and Marketing Director. "And if it becomes like a fish tale and becomes a better story over time, even better. The idea of taking a finite moment in time and helping fans relive that and share those stories, that's more important to us than just selling an item."
Quite literally, this special project began with the Bears winning the first national championship in program history. Scott Drew's 28-2 team capped off a dominant run through the NCAA Tournament with lopsided wins over Houston (78-59) in the semifinals and Gonzaga in the final.
After Baylor purchased the court from Connor Sports, the official court manufacturer for the NCAA Final Four, Artsman proactively reached out to a Baylor group that included Henry Howard, Associate AD for Capital Projects and Championships.
"They had worked with the Cleveland Cavaliers and the University of Virginia," Howard said. "Just kind of looking into what they did with those two well-known brands, we thought they would be a great company to partner with in doing something like this."
A little over five years ago, Artsman had a concept to create "Man Cave" furniture out of non-game-used basketball courts. But then, they were approached about creating some products commemorating the Cleveland Cavaliers' first NBA championship from the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse court.
"Being designers, marketers and product designers, we put together a package and worked with the Cavaliers to bring it to life for that Christmas," said Rose, a partner and Director of Development. "From there, we started slowly working with other teams and understanding what the right product mix was, what the right solution was for venders, and started curating a portfolio of products that made sense in this kind of marketplace."
Subsequently, Artsman also produced collections for the 2017 North Carolina and 2018 Villanova national championship teams.
"Through challenges and through wins, we've done just about everything," Rose said. "Kelly and I and the rest of our Artsman team have dedicated the past five years to understanding what the marketplace will bear. . . . it's been an incredibly challenging process, but it's been rewarding at the same time, because every time we do this, gets better and better and it gets better and better for the teams."
Baylor gets the benefit of that experience with a unique collection that promises to be Artsman's best yet.
Along with custom-made pieces, Smith said Artsman has two types of collections – wood tales and sights & stories.
"(Wood tales) are items that hero the wood itself," Smith said, "because some fans just want to have their hands on something – this is a piece of wood from the court. Other people like something that has sights and stories. They want a narrative told on their piece. So, it's less about the piece of wood. They want a piece of wood on there, but it's about the narrative, the players, the scores, the sequence of the tournament."
One of the custom items in the Virginia collection was a pair of 4x4 sheets from the championship court for a donor, Smith said, "so that when you walk into his study at his house, you walk into a UVA championship court."
From the Baylor Lady Bears' national championships in 2005, 2012 and 2019, Howard had seen the kinds of "trinkets, memorabilia and keepsakes" that companies would make. "I just didn't know the level that it had evolved to."
"I would say Artsman educated me when they showed us proofs of things they had done," Howard said. "That's really what opened my eyes to, 'Wow, this could really be a great thing for our fans and donors.'''
Along with the collections that Artsman will produce, Howard said there are also tentative plans to display the floor's center court logo and free-throw lanes in the new basketball pavilion when it's completed.
In addition to the introductory items, another collection will come out closer to Christmas, Smith said, "and we also plan to do some limited-time offering items in between."
"It's not a one-and-done program," Smith said. "In this first collection, these are items that we can produce, we already know they sell very well, the fans love them, they love the quality. We've talked about making sure we have inventory. I have to turn off the notices on my phone, because my phone levitates when we launch a new program."
To see previous collections by Artsman and eventually order from the Baylor collection, you can go to www.artsmansport.com. Before the public launch next Thursday, July 1, there will be an exclusive 48-hour window for Bear Foundation members on June 29-30, where members will receive a special code to access the site, preview and purchase the one-of-a-kind commemorative items.
Non-members who wish to gain early access may join the Bear Foundation for as little as a $25 annual commitment. For more information, visit the Baylor Bear Foundation site or call 254-710-2582.
"The consumer, the guest, the fan, they want it quickly," Howard said. "That's why we wanted to use Artsman, because not only are they going to do a great job with the design, with the production of high-quality pieces of the court, but also just the logistical shipping it to customers so that they get it quickly. We're just excited about the whole process."
Baylor Bear Insider
Believe it or not, your memories of the Baylor men's basketball team's historic 86-70 win over Gonzaga in this year's NCAA national championship game will start to fade over time.
Through a partnership with Baylor Athletics, Kelly Smith and Chris Rose want to help Baylor fans hold on to those memories a little longer and even share them with generations to come.
Next week, Smith's and Rose's Cincinnati-based Artsman company will release an introductory collection of commemorative items crafted from the actual game floor that was used for the Final Four at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
Ranging from bottle openers and keychains to wood blocks and frames, all the way up to executive trays and customized coffee tables, no two items in the collection are exactly the same.
"We wholeheartedly believe that when somebody picks up an item and has all the details, they go back in time and they relive that memory, and they tell the story," said Smith, one of the Artsman partners and the Creative and Marketing Director. "And if it becomes like a fish tale and becomes a better story over time, even better. The idea of taking a finite moment in time and helping fans relive that and share those stories, that's more important to us than just selling an item."
Quite literally, this special project began with the Bears winning the first national championship in program history. Scott Drew's 28-2 team capped off a dominant run through the NCAA Tournament with lopsided wins over Houston (78-59) in the semifinals and Gonzaga in the final.
After Baylor purchased the court from Connor Sports, the official court manufacturer for the NCAA Final Four, Artsman proactively reached out to a Baylor group that included Henry Howard, Associate AD for Capital Projects and Championships.
"They had worked with the Cleveland Cavaliers and the University of Virginia," Howard said. "Just kind of looking into what they did with those two well-known brands, we thought they would be a great company to partner with in doing something like this."
A little over five years ago, Artsman had a concept to create "Man Cave" furniture out of non-game-used basketball courts. But then, they were approached about creating some products commemorating the Cleveland Cavaliers' first NBA championship from the Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse court.
"Being designers, marketers and product designers, we put together a package and worked with the Cavaliers to bring it to life for that Christmas," said Rose, a partner and Director of Development. "From there, we started slowly working with other teams and understanding what the right product mix was, what the right solution was for venders, and started curating a portfolio of products that made sense in this kind of marketplace."
Subsequently, Artsman also produced collections for the 2017 North Carolina and 2018 Villanova national championship teams.
"Through challenges and through wins, we've done just about everything," Rose said. "Kelly and I and the rest of our Artsman team have dedicated the past five years to understanding what the marketplace will bear. . . . it's been an incredibly challenging process, but it's been rewarding at the same time, because every time we do this, gets better and better and it gets better and better for the teams."
Baylor gets the benefit of that experience with a unique collection that promises to be Artsman's best yet.
Along with custom-made pieces, Smith said Artsman has two types of collections – wood tales and sights & stories.
"(Wood tales) are items that hero the wood itself," Smith said, "because some fans just want to have their hands on something – this is a piece of wood from the court. Other people like something that has sights and stories. They want a narrative told on their piece. So, it's less about the piece of wood. They want a piece of wood on there, but it's about the narrative, the players, the scores, the sequence of the tournament."
One of the custom items in the Virginia collection was a pair of 4x4 sheets from the championship court for a donor, Smith said, "so that when you walk into his study at his house, you walk into a UVA championship court."
From the Baylor Lady Bears' national championships in 2005, 2012 and 2019, Howard had seen the kinds of "trinkets, memorabilia and keepsakes" that companies would make. "I just didn't know the level that it had evolved to."
"I would say Artsman educated me when they showed us proofs of things they had done," Howard said. "That's really what opened my eyes to, 'Wow, this could really be a great thing for our fans and donors.'''
Along with the collections that Artsman will produce, Howard said there are also tentative plans to display the floor's center court logo and free-throw lanes in the new basketball pavilion when it's completed.
In addition to the introductory items, another collection will come out closer to Christmas, Smith said, "and we also plan to do some limited-time offering items in between."
"It's not a one-and-done program," Smith said. "In this first collection, these are items that we can produce, we already know they sell very well, the fans love them, they love the quality. We've talked about making sure we have inventory. I have to turn off the notices on my phone, because my phone levitates when we launch a new program."
To see previous collections by Artsman and eventually order from the Baylor collection, you can go to www.artsmansport.com. Before the public launch next Thursday, July 1, there will be an exclusive 48-hour window for Bear Foundation members on June 29-30, where members will receive a special code to access the site, preview and purchase the one-of-a-kind commemorative items.
Non-members who wish to gain early access may join the Bear Foundation for as little as a $25 annual commitment. For more information, visit the Baylor Bear Foundation site or call 254-710-2582.
"The consumer, the guest, the fan, they want it quickly," Howard said. "That's why we wanted to use Artsman, because not only are they going to do a great job with the design, with the production of high-quality pieces of the court, but also just the logistical shipping it to customers so that they get it quickly. We're just excited about the whole process."
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