There’s a beast that lives on campus. Few have seen it. Those who have claim that it comes in different colors. Red, green, blue and yellow are a few of the descriptions.

However,  this beast doesn’t scare people. In fact, it’s in high demand.

“Since I started, I’ve sold about 1,350 shirts,” says Russel Finch, a senior Kinesiology major who is also the creator of Beast Clothing.

In the spring of 2008, Finch was taking his sports management and organization class when his class was presented with a project:  make and maintain a business. After the completion of his class, Finch continued to make his shirts.

“People wanted them,” Finch said. Within the kinesiology department, fellow students, as well as professors, buy his wares. “Last Wednesday, 14 to 18 people, including professors, were wearing my shirts,” he said.

But selling a popular item means keeping up with demand.

“I had about 130 shirts three weeks ago and sold out in a week and a half,” Finch said. Finch sews all his shirts, orders the materials, and distributes all by himself. Meaning, he can keep costs and prices low. “I sell my shirts for $10,” he said. “I’m not a greedy person. I just cut out the middle man. Who’s going to complain about a cheap shirt?”

Finch also justifies his pricing according to the high priced shirts he sees in the UTSA market.

“I won’t name the book store, but they’re selling shirts for $15. That’s just not right!”
Part of the appeal of Beast Clothing is that people can customize their own shirts.

“I designed my own shirt,”  senior Kinesiology major Lauren Mollard, said. “It’s a yellow tank that says ‘Beast’ on it.” 

But why the word ‘Beast?’

“I was in sports my whole life,” Finch explained. “When someone does something amazing, you usually hear, ‘That guy is a beast.’”

To give an example, Finch is from Slidell, Louisiana and an avid New Orleans Saints fan. A couple of weeks ago, Finch gave his friend 75 shirts, that look like Saint’s Quarterback Drew Brees’s jersey, he  changed the name from Brees to Beast and sold them in front of the Superdome in New Orleans. His friend sold out quickly.

The story is not hard to believe either. Finch had challenged me to try his shirt.

“Put it on,” he had told me, “and everyone you know will bug you because they want one.”
So I did. After meeting Finch, he gave me my own ‘Beast’ shirt, red with white lettering. I immediately felt like a ‘beast. While no one on campus said anything to me, I could feel the eyes of those people who saw it. Their looks said, “I need that shirt.”

That evening, when I went out to eat with my family, the girl who took my order gave me a discount  because she really liked my shirt. In fact, when it was time to take my order, she had the staff call out ‘Beast’ over the intercom.

I wore the shirt the rest of the weekend.

The  simple design, it brings a lot of attention.

“It’s going to be big,” Mollard said. “Just like Ed Hardy.”   

The amount of hours that Finch is  taking sometimes makes it diffictult for him for distribute his wares.

“I’m taking 17 hours and working full time,” he said. “But it never feels like work.” 
Just recently having launched a new Web site, imabeast.net, Finch is ecstatic about how customers think of  his shirts.
“The sales speak for themselves.”
Even if he doesn’t make it big, Finch has enjoyed the success of his clothing line.
“Life is a journey, not a destination. The hard stuff? That’s the fun part,” he said.