Daily Skiff

Two students have launched a T-shirt company and are gaining entrepreneurial experience even before they graduate.

John Hallman, a senior accounting major, and Scott Meyer, a senior studio art and environmental science major, took a financier's pen to an artist's hand and blueprinted a new style - literally.

Hallman and Meyer are the owners of Applied Science, a small T-shirt label born in the heart of the TCU campus, specializing in aquatic prints. Not to be mistaken for the affliction tee, produced by companies such as Hollister Co. or Rock & Republic, Applied Science tees are original and handcrafted artist designs printed on Hanes T-shirts, for now, Hallman said.

"We're trying to build from the ground up," Hallman said. "I've been able to use what I have learned in business classes during the start-up process which helps a lot."

Hallman said that outside of the classroom, he has spent many long nights reading books on Web design and marketing to get the company's Web site up and running.

Meyer, head of design and production for Applied Science, said he designs his aquatic prints digitally and produces them manually in the screen printing studio in Moudy Building North.

"In sum, the cost of materials and the number of man hours, is just under the cost of the tee itself," Meyer said.

The handcrafted tees are sold for $15 each.

Meyer said his philosophy behind the business was to create something that would make his art more accessible to the public.

"Our biggest patrons so far are the employees at Shoe Gypsy," Meyer said.

Three weeks ago, Hallman and Meyer began a three-month consignment with the local boutique.

Tabitha Hunt, owner of the Shoe Gypsy boutique on Park Hill Drive, said young enthusiastic designers looking to sell their products are good for local businesses.

"It gives (the designer) the opportunity to try their hand at merchandising without penalty," she said.

Hunt said that when starting a business one must supply a need for the area one is catering to.

"I think the label is fresh," she said. "There's really nothing like it right now."

Recently, the two students have teamed up to produce a Web site for their designs, scottyjohn, an online retail merchandising Web site, which is still under construction.

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