Denver-based ski-lifestyle outfitter, Tall T Productions has been serving up fresh, oversized t-shirts and hoodies for over 10 years. Owner, Paul Dowell sits down to discuss how Tall T came to be, where it’s going, and what it means to live gifted, always lifted. Follow along as we take an inside look into Tall T’s Denver office and printing facility.
In 2007, freeskiing really began to blow up. The X Games podiums were stacked, with names to the liking of Tanner Hall, Candide Thovex, Simon Dumont and Sammy Carlson. The films from that season were legendary, Seven Sunny Days for example. The outerwear was baggy and vibrant. That season, and those around it, were the epitome of the baggy and thug style of skiing. That was when Tall T stepped in.
Paul Dowell and Joshua “Moona” Haupt were very much like any park skier or snowboarder at this time, representing the thug style with baggy pants and solid-colored tall tee shirts. One day in the spring of 2007, Paul and Moona thought of the idea to put art on their blank canvases of tall tees.
“We have to put some art on these tall tees.” Paul Dowell remembered saying. “We did our very first printing with Lab Seven in Denver with two designs and three or four sizes. From there on out people kept asking us, ‘what are these, where do I get some?’ We just started saying, it’s Tall T Productions.”
From here the boys started to take things a little more serious. The first two shirt designs that Tall T created were on cheap tall tees from Foot Locker. However, those didn’t last long. The Foot Locker tees were only a few dollars a pop and were very poor quality; they began to fall apart. Production then moved onto more expensive and higher quality shirts from the Pro Club brand, which they ordered in bulk.
As more shirts began to sell, Tall T Productions moved from it’s roots in Breckenridge, Colo. down to a new Denver office. They shared a common office with a handful of creatives and artists. This is where they found most of their original and current artists for their products. Noah Cremisino was one of those artists for example, helped fine tune the Tall T Productions logo and some of the early shirt designs.
“Noah was one of the first to help put some art together. Some of the first designs involved bullets, guns, music, and weed. The Denver skyline and headphones tees were very popular.” Paul Dowell said. “The One Love design was one of our earlier ones too, and is still one of our most popular designs years later.”
In 2011, after a few seasons of printing on the Pro Club’s, Paul and Moona wanted to make a tee that was unique to Tall T Productions. The boys began to form an idea of what the ideal Tall T would be like. The ideal tee was a thicker weight that could withstand a beating from skiers in the park. They found a similar weight cotton to the Pro Club tees, altered the cut, added Tall T branding and sent the production to China.
Tall T began pumping out more designs and various other products including hoodies, hats, and accessories. Tall T began sponsoring skiers like Tanner Hall, Henrik Harlaut, Phil Casabon, and others. Many of these skiers were just starting to blow up at that time. One could say that Tall T had quite the stacked team of skiers.
Working with Tanner, Henrik and Phil, naturally collaborations with themselves and their sponsors came about.
Soon other brands in the industry wanted in on the tall tees. Inspired Media was one of the first to do a collaboration. Armada followed suit and then Tall T worked with Henrik and Tanner to make the “So Dollo” and the “Ski Boss” tees. Paul couldn’t print them fast enough.
As the business grew, Paul and the boys needed an upgrade. In 2014, the locations was moved to East Denver, just outside of Lakewood, Colo. There they have a large warehouse, shared with their current printing partner, Superior Ink. Once moved in, all of the screen printing was able to be done in-house.
After the move, more collaborations were formed; working with names to the liking of Treefort Lifestyles, HG Skis, 4Bi9, Level 1 Productions, La Familia, Haskill, The Bunch and The Big Picture. The tees began to take a more creative spin with new artists and the introduction of acid washed tees. The team began to grow, supporting more up-and-coming powerhouse skiers like Keegan Kilbride and Quinn Wolferman.
“They were my first sponsor.” Quinn Wolferman said. “It was pretty crazy to feel the support of a company that I really liked. Before any skis or anything I was getting plugged with some fresh tees. They have backed me since day one so I've got nothing but love for Paul and Tall T. I can't thank them enough for the support over the past 3 and a half years.”
Keegan and Quinn have really made a bold statement for Tall T Productions and the freeski industry at large in these last two seasons. Both of them were finalists at Level 1’s Super Unknown XIII the spring of 2016. They were both heavy contenders for winning the title of Super Unknown. Keegan came away with the title, but Quinn was far from being left in the dust.
They both had incredible seasons following Super Unknown. Keegan continued to film with Level 1, having some incredible shots in last year’s film, Pleasure and a full segment in this year’s film, Habit. The crowd went nuts when Keegan’s name came across the screen.
Quinn had a wild season to follow as well. He competed in a team event at Dew Tour alongside Tanner and Henrik for team Armada. He later came out with three jaw-dropping edits titled, Quan Summa Sawce, Afternoon Zoom, and Present Yourself. (Link to videos)
It would be an understatement to say the Keegan and Quinn are the new faces of Tall T Productions, and they aren’t going anywhere.
Today, Tall T has been printing new items, stocking up the warehouse for the new line of goods dropping in weeks to come. There are a bunch of new designs being printed, new hoodies, and much more. Paul says he worries about the new trends in skiing. The new wave trend are ironically being led by one of Tall T’s very own, Magnus Graener of The Bunch. Many skiers are trading in their 3XL Pants and Tall Tees for track pants and a standard-cut hoodie. Dowell said that he has noticed a dip in sales on the larger sizes.
Tall T Productions is a staple, core brand in freeskiing. I couldn’t see it getting wiped out by the new wave trend. However, the new wave is here, and here to stay, for a few seasons at least. Personally, the new wave isn’t my style of choice. You’ll still see me rocking the tall tees and baggy pants. Tall T Productions is a family, not a business. Businesses die, families don’t.
In 2007, freeskiing really began to blow up. The X Games podiums were stacked, with names to the liking of Tanner Hall, Candide Thovex, Simon Dumont and Sammy Carlson. The films from that season were legendary, Seven Sunny Days for example. The outerwear was baggy and vibrant. That season, and those around it, were the epitome of the baggy and thug style of skiing. That was when Tall T stepped in.
Paul Dowell and Joshua “Moona” Haupt were very much like any park skier or snowboarder at this time, representing the thug style with baggy pants and solid-colored tall tee shirts. One day in the spring of 2007, Paul and Moona thought of the idea to put art on their blank canvases of tall tees.
“We have to put some art on these tall tees.” Paul Dowell remembered saying. “We did our very first printing with Lab Seven in Denver with two designs and three or four sizes. From there on out people kept asking us, ‘what are these, where do I get some?’ We just started saying, it’s Tall T Productions.”
From here the boys started to take things a little more serious. The first two shirt designs that Tall T created were on cheap tall tees from Foot Locker. However, those didn’t last long. The Foot Locker tees were only a few dollars a pop and were very poor quality; they began to fall apart. Production then moved onto more expensive and higher quality shirts from the Pro Club brand, which they ordered in bulk.
As more shirts began to sell, Tall T Productions moved from it’s roots in Breckenridge, Colo. down to a new Denver office. They shared a common office with a handful of creatives and artists. This is where they found most of their original and current artists for their products. Noah Cremisino was one of those artists for example, helped fine tune the Tall T Productions logo and some of the early shirt designs.
“Noah was one of the first to help put some art together. Some of the first designs involved bullets, guns, music, and weed. The Denver skyline and headphones tees were very popular.” Paul Dowell said. “The One Love design was one of our earlier ones too, and is still one of our most popular designs years later.”
In 2011, after a few seasons of printing on the Pro Club’s, Paul and Moona wanted to make a tee that was unique to Tall T Productions. The boys began to form an idea of what the ideal Tall T would be like. The ideal tee was a thicker weight that could withstand a beating from skiers in the park. They found a similar weight cotton to the Pro Club tees, altered the cut, added Tall T branding and sent the production to China.
Tall T began pumping out more designs and various other products including hoodies, hats, and accessories. Tall T began sponsoring skiers like Tanner Hall, Henrik Harlaut, Phil Casabon, and others. Many of these skiers were just starting to blow up at that time. One could say that Tall T had quite the stacked team of skiers.
Working with Tanner, Henrik and Phil, naturally collaborations with themselves and their sponsors came about.
Soon other brands in the industry wanted in on the tall tees. Inspired Media was one of the first to do a collaboration. Armada followed suit and then Tall T worked with Henrik and Tanner to make the “So Dollo” and the “Ski Boss” tees. Paul couldn’t print them fast enough.
As the business grew, Paul and the boys needed an upgrade. In 2014, the locations was moved to East Denver, just outside of Lakewood, Colo. There they have a large warehouse, shared with their current printing partner, Superior Ink. Once moved in, all of the screen printing was able to be done in-house.
After the move, more collaborations were formed; working with names to the liking of Treefort Lifestyles, HG Skis, 4Bi9, Level 1 Productions, La Familia, Haskill, The Bunch and The Big Picture. The tees began to take a more creative spin with new artists and the introduction of acid washed tees. The team began to grow, supporting more up-and-coming powerhouse skiers like Keegan Kilbride and Quinn Wolferman.
“They were my first sponsor.” Quinn Wolferman said. “It was pretty crazy to feel the support of a company that I really liked. Before any skis or anything I was getting plugged with some fresh tees. They have backed me since day one so I've got nothing but love for Paul and Tall T. I can't thank them enough for the support over the past 3 and a half years.”
Keegan and Quinn have really made a bold statement for Tall T Productions and the freeski industry at large in these last two seasons. Both of them were finalists at Level 1’s Super Unknown XIII the spring of 2016. They were both heavy contenders for winning the title of Super Unknown. Keegan came away with the title, but Quinn was far from being left in the dust.
They both had incredible seasons following Super Unknown. Keegan continued to film with Level 1, having some incredible shots in last year’s film, Pleasure and a full segment in this year’s film, Habit. The crowd went nuts when Keegan’s name came across the screen.
Quinn had a wild season to follow as well. He competed in a team event at Dew Tour alongside Tanner and Henrik for team Armada. He later came out with three jaw-dropping edits titled, Quan Summa Sawce, Afternoon Zoom, and Present Yourself. (Link to videos)
It would be an understatement to say the Keegan and Quinn are the new faces of Tall T Productions, and they aren’t going anywhere.
Today, Tall T has been printing new items, stocking up the warehouse for the new line of goods dropping in weeks to come. There are a bunch of new designs being printed, new hoodies, and much more. Paul says he worries about the new trends in skiing. The new wave trend are ironically being led by one of Tall T’s very own, Magnus Graener of The Bunch. Many skiers are trading in their 3XL Pants and Tall Tees for track pants and a standard-cut hoodie. Dowell said that he has noticed a dip in sales on the larger sizes.
Tall T Productions is a staple, core brand in freeskiing. I couldn’t see it getting wiped out by the new wave trend. However, the new wave is here, and here to stay, for a few seasons at least. Personally, the new wave isn’t my style of choice. You’ll still see me rocking the tall tees and baggy pants. Tall T Productions is a family, not a business. Businesses die, families don’t.
