Another year is in the books at U.P. Supply Co. and 2019 was such an incredible year that it has taken us nearly a month to get our Year in Review published. For a team of three, we were able to accomplish a lot this year, many things we could not have dreamed UP in our own imaginations.
It was December 2007 when Bugsy first created Yooper Steez in the basement of his parent’s house in Baraga. A dozen years have passed, and after a rebranding and opening our brick and mortar store, we’re still eager to find unique ways to celebrate the Upper Peninsula of MichiganAmerica.
Hardly one year ago we opened the doors to the U.P. Supply Co. storefront for the first time, that was December 11th of 2018. In our first year of the brick and mortar world we couldn’t be more pleased. We’ve met countless folks who we found common connections with, shared Upper Peninsula stories, and there were customers we met for the first time after shipping them orders for the last ten years.
During this last week, if you’re in the Upper Peninsula, there’s a good chance you may have seen this photo circulating on Facebook.
Talk about a throwback! That photo has been around since February 2008, but only a few people have seen it until now. Seeing it myself had me reminiscing and thinking I should share some details about the origin story including this photo and the humble beginnings of Michigan’s original Upper Peninsula apparel brand.
Welcome to Yooper Steez! We have sought to create a brand new Yooper website unlike any Yooper site you’ve seen before and we’re happy to welcome you. To both Yoopers and non-Yoopers alike we’re looking to spread pride in Michigan’s great Upper Peninsula and all those things that may make us Yoopers.
Yooper or not, your first question might be, “What the heck is steez?” No, steez, is not another slang word used among Yooper dialect. The word steez is actually quite simple to understand, meaning style with ease. We like style, and even more we like to take it easy.