Warlock Lid puts province upfront, on top

Warlock Lid Co.’s success has been fuelled not by sorcery but by national pride.

The four-year-old company sells Canadian-themed apparel, including a provincial collection with unique designs for Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario. Headquartered in southwestern Manitoba, Warlock is on track to sell around 30,000 hats this year and a similar amount of hoodies, according to owner Brett Warbeck.

“We’ve almost doubled our production every year since we’ve started,” Warbeck said by phone from his shop on Broadway Avenue in Killarney. “People seem to love the hats and hoodies more than ever.”

The 37-year-old creates the designs and sources the clothing from Canadian suppliers. The leather patches and rubber pieces bearing the logos — also sourced in Canada — are applied at the shop.

Warbeck has a full-time employee working alongside him, plus a sales rep in Winnipeg and two in Alberta.

Thanks to their work, Warlock’s products are available in 100 stores throughout Western Canada.

“Everybody in Manitoba seems to be proud to show they’re from Manitoba,” Warbeck said. “I get a ton of pictures from Mexico and (the Dominican Republic) and Cuba … with people saying they’d met somebody else with a Toba hat or saw multiple (Toba hats) down there.”

Warbeck said it’s difficult to judge whether or not there’s an uptick in sales around Canada Day, because the holiday coincides with Warlock’s busiest season. “With wholesale, all stores stock up for summer,” he said. “Everybody wants a hat in the summer.”

Warbeck was an insurance broker for 15 years, but left his job in September to make Warlock his sole focus. The entrepreneur said he loves being his own boss and having the freedom to try new ideas.

“It’s a pretty cool feeling when you try something new and people love it, and it takes off and that’s one of your bestsellers,” he said.

Born in Calgary and raised in Estevan, Sask., Warbeck moved to Killarney after high school to live at his parents’ cabin and work at a golf course.

He’s long had an entrepreneurial bent. In the last 20 years, he’s started an iPhone repair business and a sign company. He also ran a locksmith service also named Warlock. When he wound that company down, he kept the name for one of his next ventures: a boutique golf accessories enterprise.

Five years ago, Warbeck came across a small company in Alberta called Brouhaha Lid Co. that sold Wild Rose Country-themed apparel. He approached the owner about partnering with him to create a small run of Manitoba hats in time for Christmas 2021. They quickly sold out.

When Brouhaha’s founder lost interest in the business, Warbeck purchased it and rebranded it as Warlock. After hat sales started taking off, Warbeck put Warlock Golf on the backburner.

Shelmerdine Garden Centre has been carrying Warlock’s apparel for the last few years. The products are well made and have a broad appeal, said Krista Strang, purchasing manager.

“As a buyer for a local Manitoba company, that’s always going to be my first priority — I want to shop locally (and) I very much want to invest in small Manitoba businesses,” she said. “It’s not a flying-off-the-shelves item, but it’s got a quiet following.”

At Oh Canada, which has stores in CF Polo Park and St. Vital Centre, customers ask for Warlock by name, said Jennifer Roemer, district merchandising manager.

“We were quite pleasantly surprised (by customer response) at the beginning and we continue to be,” she said. “We like carrying his product. I think it’s great to support someone else who’s local.”

Both Oh Canada stores see a “huge” increase in customer traffic in the lead-up to Canada Day, Roemer added.

“(There’s) always lots of happy Canadians,” she said. “Lots of tourists, too, who are excited to be here, experiencing the city and the country, so that’s nice to see.”

aaron.epp@freepress.mb.ca