Can BAD be good for Beloit? Rockford retailer aims to do for 608 what it did for 815

By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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BELOIT, Wis. — When Rockford Art Deli printed its first 815 shirts a decade ago, the timing of the release on Aug. 15 was merely coincidence.

It just so happened that Aug. 15, 2014, was the date of that week’s Rockford City Market, where the local retailer was selling its clothing each week. It would be two years before the city celebrated its first Rockford Day on Aug. 15, but it was the start of momentum for 815 being a brand synonymous with the city.

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Today a shirt emblazoned with the city’s primary area code has become a defacto uniform for Rockford pride.

“I never in my years would’ve thought people would’ve loved wearing Rockford shirts,” said Jarrod Hennis, owner of Rockford Art Deli, a 13-year-old company also known as RAD. “But now you can’t go anywhere in Rockford without seeing somebody wearing a Rockford shirt.”

Now Hennis wants to recreate the success of the brand about 15 miles north in Beloit with a new spin-off company called Beloit Art Deli, or BAD.

He’s kicking off the company with a pop-up shop today at the Beloit Farmers Market in downtown. He hopes to have a brick-and-mortar retail location before the holidays.

This time, the timing of the introduction of 608 shirts is no coincidence. Hennis is doing it on June 8, or 6/08. That’s not a holiday embraced in Beloit like 815 Day is yet, but Hennis sees the potential.

The 608 area code covers far-reaching stretches beyond Beloit. It also serves Janesville, Wisconsin Dells and Madison, among others. Likewise, the 815 area code goes well beyond Rockford, but now wearing an 815 shirt is recognized as celebrating your roots in the Rockford area.

“Rockford owns 815,” Hennis said. “I think we can make that happen with 608.”

Beloit Art Deli will also sell shirts that celebrate Wisconsin and the Midwest, and it will have a variety of outdoor retail gear and clothing.

Hennis said the move into Beloit is, in some ways, a gamble to see if they can make lightning strike twice with a city-celebrating brand. But he’s not the only one who sees the potential for it to work in Beloit.

“I think that the model that Rockford Art Deli has followed over the years will be immensely successful here in Beloit,” said Celestino Ruffin, CEO of Visit Beloit. “People yearn for anything that’s positive going on in the community. We look forward to the inclusion of not only this business but any business that considers Beloit a place to be.”

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Hennis started looking for a brick-and-mortar location for his business in November in hopes he could have opened by the unofficial 608 Day. Ruffin said it’s tough for businesses to find brick-and-mortar locations in downtown, where Hennis wants BAD located.

“We have a low vacancy rate in the downtown core of our community,” Ruffin said.

Beloit’s downtown is filled with local shops, restaurants and a variety of investments from Geronimo Hospitality Group, the company founded by billionaire businesswoman Diane Hendricks. Ruffin said there is a need for locally-focused retail like Beloit Art Deli.

“The need for retail in the Beloit area is strong. We’ve had a lack of retailers like Rockford Art Deli here in the community for a long time. People look to buy local, and especially buy retail here locally,” Ruffin said. “The designs that business creates, the products that they sell, meet the needs of not only those that live here, but those who are coming to visit our community.”

Ruffin said Visit Beloit and the Greater Beloit Chamber of Commerce are helping Hennis secure a spot for BAD.

Beloit Art Deli will continue to have pop-up shops in the coming months until it lands its brick-and-mortar storefront. Hennis, a member of the Greater Beloit Chamber of Commerce for nearly five years, said he’ll also continue to integrate the brand into the community.

“We will hire a store manager who is hardcore Beloit, loves Beloit, lives there. All the staff would be from that area, too, because we want to support that economy,” he said. “We want to be a part of the community. I’m not just the Rockford guy coming to Wisconsin. … We want to integrate there and give back the same way we’ve done in Rockford.”

Hennis’ former partner Britney Lindgren designed the first 815 shirt 10 years ago. The 815 logo is still among the best sellers for RAD. In his team’s marketing meetings, they often discuss what will be the next 815 shirt.

He hopes he has that with BAD and 608 in Beloit. His goal is to help elevate the community and give it a way to show its sense of pride.

“815 Day is one of our biggest days of the year for sales. It’s also a super cool thing to promote Rockford,” Hennis said. “The sense of pride of people coming out and supporting that, I want to see that in Beloit. I want to see that happening here.”

If you go | Beloit Farmers Market

When: 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, June 8

Where: 300 block of State Street and 400 block of Grande Avenue in downtown Beloit, Wisconsin

Follow Beloit Art Deli on Instagram: @beloitartdeli