The KCK company produces printed apparel for the entire nation.

Did you buy a souvenir T-shirt during your summer vacation? There’s a better-than-decent chance it came from Kansas City, Kan. For 50 years, Eagle Products has produced shirts, caps and other printed apparel for gift shops, resorts and other tourist-based retailers across the country.

EAGLE’S ORIGIN

Jack Carduff and his family started Eagle back in 1966. Originally, it was a franchisee of the Colorado-based Spoofer Shops. The franchise died one month after Carduff opened for business.

So he did what any good entrepreneur would: He hustled. He found new vendors. He hit up new clients (pretty much every fraternity and sorority in Kansas and Missouri) and developed new products. T-shirts with the peace sign, flower power and other “hippie designs” were hot sellers.

EAGLE’S FUTURE

David Rockey bought Eagle Products from Jack’s kids about two years ago. He’s made a major investment in equipment and moved Eagle from the Crossroads to Armourdale.

Rockey, who previously owned a Wichita-based transportation company, was looking for a new business, and what the Carduffs had built fit the bill. “It had a good brand in the industry, good people in place, long-term customers.”

Eagle endures because it executes at a high level. “The pillars of success are customer service, design, quality prints, sharp pricing and doing it in a timely fashion,” said Rockey.