Community brings out the best in people, and for the owners of Underdog Sports, Memorabilia & Games it’s what drives their entire business. Co-owners Kelly Pulliam and Paul Layton, who are also engaged, are currently preparing to open their new sporting goods store in the Town and Country Shopping Center on MacArthur Boulevard.
Paul Layton is an active member of Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Illinois Capital Region, located at 928 S. Spring St. in Springfield. While serving as a big brother of two young people, Layton realized that his little brothers did not have any sporting equipment. Layton also felt that the Springfield community was underserved in the area of used sporting goods. This prompted Layton and Pulliam to provide a-low cost new and used sporting goods store that will donate its profits to Big Brothers Big Sisters, along with another nonprofit, Illinois Elks Children’s Care Corporation.
“We wanted to make a difference in the community. That might sound hokey, but (the) Parkland (school shooting) is really what got us thinking, ‘What could be done to change some of these outcomes locally?’ For right or wrong, this is the idea that we thought we would put our energy into,” Layton said.
Layton and Pulliam are trying to compile products from all the sports that are popular in the central Illinois area such as baseball, basketball, disc golf and even pickleball. Layton says they will buy used items in a variety of conditions. Underdog will clean all of the items they purchase, making sure not to spread unwanted bacteria such as MRSA. Memorabilia will also be a big part of their business model, and Layton plans on hosting card trading nights throughout the coming months.
“We have written into our lease charitable events in the spring and fall,” said Layton. “We are going to have a cards night, and if a kid from Big Brothers Big Sisters comes in we will give them 10 free cards to start building a collection. We will keep it wide open, and hopefully just provide something kids can do,” Layton said.
Layton and Pulliam have both spent most of their careers in corporate positions, Layton working in product testing and Pulliam in insurance. Layton plans to use his professional experience to see if Underdog’s strategy of giving back to the community will be a viable business model.
“We are going to have a period of getting out of the red. We will be giving to charity even throughout that. We’ll pay the employees who run the business and the rest will go to charity after that,” Layton said.
Underdog plans to have a soft opening on July 27. While not all of the signs or products will be out, Layton and Pulliam believe that it is imperative to be open to gain exposure in the Springfield community as soon as possible.
Niko Robledo is the editorial intern for Illinois Times and a journalism major at Lincoln Land Community College.
