When Steve Babinchak went to Penn State in the 1990s, students used landline phones in their dorms. Before speed dial, you had to dial all 10 digits to call friends, family, or anyone else they desired to speak to.

For Penn Staters, there was one common set of numbers amongst the 10 digits— State College’s area code: 814

“Anytime I knew I had to call, I was dialing 814-blah-blah-blah,” Babinchak said. “And that’s just what you did over and over again. It was normal to become very emotionally attached to 814.”

Babinchak, who has attended Penn State games since he was born, frequents State College. All three of his kids are Penn Staters, including his youngest, who is still a student, as well as six other nieces and nephews who have graduated in the last couple of years.

His family bleeds blue and white.

During one of Babinchak’s visits, he noticed someone wearing an “814” hat, the number he had become so attached to during his time at Penn State. But he couldn’t find them in downtown stores, nor one he liked online.

“And I’m like, ‘You know what? If I want this and I’m emotionally attached, there’s a lot of alumni; I wonder if other people want it?” Babinchak said. “So I thought, I’m going to make some 814 hats.”

The 1996 graduate went to work.

He spent more time than you could believe designing the numbers, down to the last detail, so they would resemble the numbers on the back of Penn State’s Basic Blues.

Babinchak partnered with a brand he knew well, Legacy Hats, a custom hat brand, to produce the 814 trucker hats he first had in mind.

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“I had a couple of Legacy hats that I really liked and I wanted to align with somebody that’s got a really good hat brand that people like, and that was very purposeful,” Babinchak said. “And I could tell it was right because I had people come up saying, ‘Oh, I love Legacy hats, I want to get [yours] because it’s Legacy.'”

It’s been over a year since the first shipment arrived for Babinchak, and although he was the brains and designer of the operation, his wife helped make the first few sales.

“I asked her to put the hats on [Facebook] for me,” he said. “And once she listed them, people started buying them…I’m on Facebook now, and then I just got on Etsy maybe a month or two ago, but that’s basically my supply chain network.”

Babinchak has since added a new White Out hat and a coin purse, handmade by his daughter, to his available items. He continues to experiment with designs, such as the structured hat and foam lettering, to entice a new generation of Nittany Lions to fall in love with 814.

He’s also partnered with Penn Steaks co-owner Jeff Goldberg to sell his hats outside of the cheesesteak shop. The relationship began when Goldberg bought an 814 hat on Facebook and messaged Babinchak to collaborate.

Babinchak and Goldberg plan to sell the hats inside Penn Steaks soon.

“I’m just a dude; I’m a supply chain guy but I’m not a retailer or merchandiser,” Babinchak said. “Just a dude who had an idea, and I wanted to try to see what happens with it. So, yeah, it’s a fun hobby.”