MOUNT PLEASANT - C&O Sportswear is celebrating 50 years of operation. Owner Tim MacGregor reflected on the ups and downs of owning a business.
“I needed a job and there weren’t any jobs around. I just had gotten out of college, I was going to sit for the CPA exam. And before that, I ran into an old friend who had been selling this stuff down in Florida, and he said, well, why don’t we try to print some of this stuff for you? Go sell it. I didn’t know what I was selling. He didn’t know how to print it, but we winged it. And here we are 50 years later.”
Tim MacGregor opened the store on May 12th, 1976 and throughout the store you will meet family members along the way. Including his son and brother. Without family, the store wouldn’t be what it is today.
“It doesn’t seem that long. But then again, when I start thinking back… and it was like with my wife, who was just a gem, we were dating when we started. For some of our dates, we were counting inventory down in the dirty basement or taking the stuff out. And she did it. And then she worked here for a lot of years.”
From the front it looks like C&O only sells sports apparel but in the back of the store they print apparel for different businesses, organizations, schools and more. The staff has a deep connection to CMU and other Michigan teams!
“I got to say those CMU beating MSU were pretty special,” said MacGregor. “And also, my son came up with a shirt for the Detroit Rams when Stafford was playing in the SuperBowl. And that got picked up by Mrs. Stafford and it went viral all over the country. We were phenomenally busy. I mean, this was just crazy busy. And for those three or 4 or 5 days, I was sending stuff all over the country the next day. I mean, for one shirt. And they were paying shipping of 150 bucks. Not a problem. They wanted to do it. It was special.”
This story was extra special because I brought my Dad along. C&O was his go to spot for apparel in college and when I started at CMU it was the first stop after orientation.
“When I first came here, I needed to get my gear. Everyone needed to get a fitted, Central Michigan hat…. And there’s a fitted cap over here that I had my eye on that I might be taking home later on today. So I’m excited to visit and look around and buy some CMU gear.”
We also wore our C&O shirts that said “Beat State Again” for the occasion. While walking around my Dad says why he keeps coming back.
“It’s the tradition. When you spend three, four, five years of your life in a university studying. You meet so many new people, friends, and it becomes a tradition, right? So, when I graduated, there was a gap because I moved out of state for a little bit. But then, coming back and with Megan going to Central, meeting new friends, we’re the same age.
You know, I think the parents talk more now than the kids now. Maybe not, but at least you know about tailgating and coming to the Central game.”
MacGregor has advice for other people out there, who may be scared to take the jump to start their own business.
“Be willing to sacrifice,” MacGregor said. “It doesn’t happen overnight. It’s a long period. It’s a good one, but it’s a long one… I would hope that there would be more younger people becoming entrepreneurs because I think it’s kind of like the engine in our country that gets things moving and gets other ideas going. And it’s not easy. It’s not an easy process. It’s a rewarding process.”
To find out more about C&O Sportswear or to order apparel, click here.