The PeppyWear Story

Hi, I’m Scott Bannon, owner of Bannon Productions and creator of the PeppyWear℠ brand.

Peppywear began as an offline service of Bannon Productions in the late 1990s, a DTG (direct to garment) heat-press transfer and print shop.

I started with a small line of fun (and sassy!) original designs, as well as a number of Pittsburgh-centric designs that promoted the pride I’ve always felt – and the pride that is shared by the people who make my hometown a special place.

In addition, PeppyWear did a lot of custom work, and one of my proudest achievements was working with Pittsburgh-based Moss Side Middle School in a campaign after the 9/11 attacks that raised more than $10,000 for the 9/11 Victims Scholarship Fund.

PeppyWear was a slow-growing labor of love in those early years, but exploded when we finally went online in January of 2002. At that time PeppyWear was one of the only places on the Internet where customers could order custom Print On Demand work by uploading their own images and designing their own products in our Custom Product Builder application.

From 2002 to 2011, PeppyWear became a strong-performing brand that consistently achieved 5 figures in online sales each month. However, due to a combination of personal considerations and a changing competitive landscape, in 2011 I made the hard choice to retire the PeppyWear service and focus on other aspects of my business. It was a sad time, but also exciting both personally and professionally.

But I’ve never truly felt at peace with the decision. No matter how much success I found in my other ventures, I always regretted my decision regarding PeppyWear. Truth is, running PeppyWear was the most fun I’ve ever had in my working life. The people I got to know and work with were some of the best and most creative friends I’ve ever had, and there really is a special joy in bringing smiles and happiness to customers with fun and useful products. Nobody ever says “I just bought my Dad a six-month web-hosting package for his birthday, and he couldn’t have been more excited!” But they do write to say how much their friends and family loved and laughed over the unique and fun products they found and created through PeppyWear.

As a business owner, you don’t always get opportunities to help create that kind of joy for people. And when you do, it’s special. It’s something to hang on to. Or, in my case, it’s something to return to.

The opportunity to relaunch PeppyWear came my way in 2018 and I spent months considering it. My heart said jump, but I knew that this will likely be the last business venture I become involved with, and I wanted to be absolutely certain I would be able to give PeppyWear–and my customers–the time, attention, and service they deserve.

When an old friend and creative collaborator, Roberta, told me she was on-board and ready to pick up where we’d left off 8 years ago, I knew it was time to take the leap.

So here we are, saying hello (again), world: “PeppyWear – It’s Just For Play”

This is the PeppyWear story so far. We’re up and running, serving new and old customers, developing and designing new products, and helping to create joy for the people we’re honored to serve.

And I can’t wait to see where our story goes from here.

Scott Bannon