Swing for the big league: Custom baseball bat maker turns wood into diamond-worthy dingers

Startland News’ Startup Road Trip series explores innovative and uncommon ideas finding success in rural America and Midwestern startup hubs outside the Kansas City metro. This series is possible thanks to the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, which leads a collaborative, nationwide effort to identify and remove large and small barriers to new business creation.

BALDWIN CITY, Kansas — A slow runner doesn’t often make it to home plate, said Jacob Austin Walters, but quick hits and speed go foul if a baseball player doesn’t take time to learn the game.

Walters, founder of JAWbats, spent a decade refining his handcrafted baseball bats — developing a keen understanding of his products’ performance — before turning to tech innovations to help boost production and scale the custom bat maker and retailer.

“I’ve made bats by hand for over 10 years,” he said. “You can’t build a business that way, and you can’t make money that way — but fortunately, I was young and had all the time in the world,” he said. “Each bat is very thoughtfully put together with the player in mind, so that they can take their game to the next level.”

Click here to check out JAWbats.

Jacob Austin Walters, JAWbats

Growing up in Overland Park as a baseball kid who enjoyed woodworking, Walters began casually — making wooden bats in his early teens by watching YouTube videos and learning through trial and error, he recalled. 

“I would make bats for myself and buddies of mine on the team; I made enough to buy a little more wood and keep making them,” Walters said. “Before I knew it, I was off playing college ball at Neosho down in Southern Kansas. A lot of guys there were business-minded, and that led to me ultimately forming an LLC.”

JAWbats officially launched in 2012. Walters stopped playing baseball after two community college world series appearances to pursue his business full time; he spent five years working out of his parents’ basement until he secured his current warehouse in Baldwin City, Kansas. 

Within the past decade, JAWbats has been featured at Wrigley Field, partnered with professional baseball teams and athletes, and garnered nearly 300,000 followers across its social media platforms, Walters noted.

“At first, I took to Twitter really hard, building the company on there and doing a lot of giveaways,” Walters said, adding that the majority of JAWbats’ audience comes from Tik Tok and Instagram.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by JAWbats, L.L.C. (@jawbats)

JAWbats now has a CNC machine to help keep up with bat production, Walters said; but his experience of handcrafting bats still plays a key role in knowing the feel of the product. 

“Our motto is: thoughtfully crafted wood bats,” he shared. “We are known for our quality, as well as our customization.”

Customers can fully customize their bats by choosing the model, as well as the sizes of barrel, handle and knob. Aesthetically, they also can pick colors, designs and engravings. 

“We have an artist who we work with to do some special requests, and then I can do some designs,” Walters said. “Just recently, I worked on a Houston Astros bat that kind of mimics their Space City uniform. … We can pretty much do anything.”

Click here to request a custom-designed bat. 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by JAWbats, L.L.C. (@jawbats)

Jacob Austin Walters and Austin Williams, JAWbats

The JAWbats team now includes Walters and his long-time friend, Austin Williams, but the team is set to hit a new stage of growth.

“I’m bringing on some sales people, and then we just finished a deal bringing on a partner,” Walters teased. “It shouldn’t be too long before we have a big announcement. It’s something we’ve been working on for about a year to help us expand and accomplish the things we want to do — so we are very excited for that.”

JAWbats has been a journey of trial and error, Walters continued, but his passion and perseverance has allowed him to inch closer and closer to home plate.

“I’m always looking forward, so it’s been difficult to stop and appreciate what I’ve done,” he admitted. “I think when we approached this deal, it was a real turning point for me to realize that we’re becoming a major player in the industry. I’ve gotten so stuck at working in the shop, I don’t fully see the outside attention on the business.”

JAWbats

JAWbats

For other individuals who want to build their passion into a business, Walters advised accepting failure at the start — but learning from it.

“A lot of people get caught up in the stress of getting started and getting a business plan together that they never start,” he said. “I had no idea what a business plan was when I started making bats. But you learn as you go and as you make mistakes, but you just keep going. … There are going to be bad days for sure, but what I’ve noticed is that the best days follow close by.”

Walters’ ultimate vision for JAWbats: create a legacy for the brand.

“Whether that be JAWbats getting Major League Baseball certified and working closely with the pros, or just always maintaining that super quality product that people sought after to swing, the end goal is to leave a legacy and be a brand that people respect.”

This story is possible thanks to support from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, a private, nonpartisan foundation that works together with communities in education and entrepreneurship to create uncommon solutions and empower people to shape their futures and be successful.

For more information, visit www.kauffman.org and connect at www.twitter.com/kauffmanfdn and www.facebook.com/kauffmanfdn