Twin brothers, Randy and Jeff Vines, grew up in the suburbs of St. Louis, but fell in love with the history, culture, diversity, and even the quirkiness of the city of St. Louis at a very young age. On Saturdays, while most teenage suburbanites were hanging around shopping malls, the Vines brothers would hop on a city buss and spend the day producing a local access television show on city life. "The people in the city are just a notch above. They have swagger you just don't see everywhere," explains Randy Vines.

While away at college, the brothers wanted to display their civic pride and show-off the uniqueness of their beloved city, but the only apparel available was the typical tourist attire. Back in St. Louis with traditional jobs, the Vines brothers continued to long for edgy, trendy apparel depicting the colorfulness of St. Louis City. So they decided to create their own.

"When we would wear own designs we'd be asked by strangers on the street where did you get that shirt," remembers Jeff Vines. "So we did a small run and then signed up to have a booth at some downtown festivals and we always would sell-out quickly. We learned real quick what people wanted."

That was the beginning of STL-Style. Mostly selling out of boxes from the back of their car, the Vines' t-shirt creations became a big hit garnering extensive press coverage, including an article in The New York Times. Soon people were ordering from around the world and it was difficult to keep up with demand. While continuing to work their "day jobs", the two committed nights and weekends to their burgeoning business. "There weren't enough hours in the day. We had to hire our friends to help out part time and it became a matter of whether we are going to keep treading water and doing what we are doing or are we going to take this to the next level and get serious about it," Jeff says. It's a pivotal point many part-time business owners face.

After nine years of part-time operations, the Vines twins decided to turn their part-time passion into a full-time enterprise. Randy and Jeff Vines waited until the business basically directed their decision for them--STL-Style had gone as far as it could go as a part-time endeavor. A part-time business gives you the opportunity to develop your business model and learn from your mistakes. You have a history and a customer base from which to grow which enhances your chances for success. As Randy notes, "I think more and more the culture in America is about doing less conventional approaches to earning a living. More than ever there is this excitement about entrepreneurialism and people are figuring out a way to turn their passion into dollar signs."