Meet Neal Goulet

We recently connected with Neal Goulet and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Neal, really happy you were able to join us today and we’re looking forward to sharing your story and insights with our readers. Let’s start with the heart of it all – purpose. How did you find your purpose?

More than a decade ago when I began blogging in earnest for my public relations business, I occasionally wrote about my passion for American-made consumer products. I had grown frustrated with the dearth of domestic options I was finding and wanted to help, in some small way, draw attention to those companies making things here.

But I didn’t want to be a spectator only, so in fall 2016 (and with a small window in which to have the products made in time for the holiday season) I came out with two original American-made products: a felt pennant honoring our home town, Hershey, Pa., and a knit pom hat in Hershey school colors. I sold them on social media and with an ad in our local weekly newspaper.

The response was strong enough, and I was determined enough, that we introduced Stay Apparel Co. in October 2017, focusing on graphic tees and sweatshirts with a sense of place: Hershey and surrounding communities including Harrisburg, York, Lancaster and, of course, Pennsylvania. We sold online and at local pop-up markets.

We subsequently added everything from stickers and patches to ball caps and tote bags as we traveled to a different event most weekends for more than six years. We opened a brick-and-mortar store in June 2024 in Hershey, in a small building called the Milk House adjacent to an old dairy barn that houses our landlord, the Hershey History Center.

Always and forever, Made in the USA is at the heart of what we do. A sign on our checkout counter reads, “If it isn’t Made in the USA, then we won’t sell it.”

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

You can find hints of what manifested, in my late 40s, as Stay Apparel Co. in my early youth. Growing up in Maine, I was a big baseball and hockey fan, with a keen interest in the aesthetics of team uniforms. My brother and I ordered on-field hats by mail at a time when they were not offered in retail stores.

A journalism major in college, I became a daily reporter and had hats and T-shirts made bearing our newspaper’s logo and sold them to colleagues.

I transitioned into public relations, working several years at an advertising agency before starting my own business, which I operated for more than 20 years. But as the PR industry changed — earned media giving way more and more to social media — I felt pulled toward something new and truly my own. I yearned for consumer customers rather than business clients. And I wanted to be part of the Made in USA movement.

I started Stay in 2017, selling online and at area pop-up markets until opening a brick-and-mortar location in June 2024. That July, we started a makers market. One Sunday a month from February through November, we host area artisans on the Hershey History Center property where our store is. These vendors set up tables and tents and sell their wares, from candles and jewelry to soap and pottery to stationery and woodcraft.

All of this seems like a natural career evolution as I still use my reporting and writing skills daily, whether communicating with vendors, writing news releases, or crafting blog posts. I am mostly a one-man operation (assisted occasionally and generously by my wife and children), effectively serving as the creative director while working with a small group of talented graphic designers and a screen printer to execute my vision.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

1. Vision: As a business reporter in the 1990s, I regularly interacted with the economic development director in York County, Pa. David Carver impressed upon me the importance of seeing possibility and opportunity; for instance, the potential in a disused industrial building or in turning local manufacturing history into a tourist attraction depicted in a district of historical murals.

I’ve taken that to heart with Stay: creating a brand, developing and curating products, launching a makers market.

2. Stick-to-itiveness: Woody Allen famously said that “Ninety percent of success in life is just showing up.” Of course there’s more to it than that, but we don’t celebrate enough how hard people work, day in and day out, and the value of being dependable. I learned that lesson early in life, delivering newspapers six days per week from elementary school into high school. My customers depended on me, and if I didn’t show up, they weren’t getting a paper.

In seven-plus years of pop-up shows, I’ve suffered through plenty of clunkers that made me wonder what I was doing with my life. In those instances, it has been useful for me to have the approach of a football placekicker who just missed a game-winning field goal. The challenge is to turn the page and get ready for the next game or, in my case, show or store opening. There’s tremendous value and reward in forging ahead, in continuing to show up.

3. Self-reliance: Starting a business is a lonely endeavor, which appeals to me as an introvert. I’m also a contrarian, so the idea of offering only American-made tees compelled me even while knowing that less than 3 percent of apparel sold in the United States is made here and many consumers are indifferent to that reality. And having limited resources necessitates that I assume a lot of roles, including many hours of working shows or staffing the store by myself.

My advice to someone new on their journey, relative to the three points above, is to steel yourself to the road ahead and the challenges it will present. Really question your commitment and know that you must be the engine for and guardian of what you pursue.

What has been your biggest area of growth or improvement in the past 12 months?

Without a doubt, finding a permanent home was the highlight of our past year. While we continue to participate in occasional pop-up events and will be forever grateful for the opportunities they have given us, we needed to operate more than one day per week to grow.

With regular hours in a fixed location, sufficient space and vintage decor that mirrors the retro vibe of our products, we’re far better positioned to tell our brand story. We have been able to showcase all of our products (not just what fits on a six-foot table) and add new ones. For instance, in 2025 we hope to introduce a selection of our tee designs in child’s sizes and expand our selection of curated products to include pottery and photo prints of Hershey scenes.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://stayapparel.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stayapparelco/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StayApparelCo/

Image Credits

Stay Apparel Co. for the store/model pics

All other photos credit: Susquehanna Style Magazine/Karlo Gesner Photography