Advertisement
Advertisement

Stephens was pleased with results—which combine the crown of a gambler or fedora with a baseball-like bill, bringing to mind Civil War soldier caps, as seen in Glory. Taking it for a test drive around the neighborhood, Stephens found his design appealed to others as well.

“People were asking me, ‘Man, where’d you get that hat?’” he recalled. “I would tell them, ‘I remixed it!’”

Advertisement

Urged by friends to start a line based on his prototype, in 2012, Stephens launched Popz Topz, named in part from the nickname he picked up hanging with his famous son.

“In John’s circle, as I became more acquainted with his team members and the people who work with and for him, they started calling me Pops,” Stephens explained. “‘Hey Pops’ this, and ‘Pops’ that. So that kind of caught on and we said, ‘Well, why don’t we just call it Popz Topz!’”

Advertisement

And does the EGOT in Stephens’ life rock his pop’s unisex styles? Of course, but he’s not the ideal brand ambassador.

Advertisement

“John wears the hats, but he only does it strictly for business purposes and because I’m his dad,” Stephens admits. “He’s not really a hat person, and I think the person who best represents Popz Topz is a person who likes hats.”