The Belltower Collection
Introducing The Belltower Collection
By NC State, for NC State
The Belltower Collection is a private label brand that was developed by and is proprietary to NC State University. The product line for the private label includes apparel and merchandise sold exclusively by Wolfpack Outfitters, NC State’s campus store selling apparel, souvenirs, school supplies, technology and more.
In December 2019 an interdepartmental university work group was formed to develop an NC State private label brand and product line. The work group included representation from across campus, including the Poole College of Management, the Wilson College of Textiles and the College of Design. Although the work group considered the retail potential of private label merchandise, there were many other factors and objectives that were the primary drivers for the brand’s creation. A central focus of the private label initiative is to align with the university’s land-grant mission:
As a research-extensive land-grant university, North Carolina State University is dedicated to excellent teaching, the creation and application of knowledge, and engagement with public and private partners. By uniting our strength in science and technology with a commitment to excellence in a comprehensive range of disciplines, NC State promotes an integrated approach to problem solving that transforms lives and provides leadership for social, economic and technological development across North Carolina and around the world.
The primary objectives for developing The Belltower Collection and NC State’s own private label are to:
- Provide a unique opportunity to celebrate the university’s history and promote community pride in NC State and one of its Hallowed Places, in conjunction with the Memorial Belltower completion and restoration project.
- Create interdepartmental business and educational development opportunities for NC State students, faculty and staff.
- Offer products that create a positive emotional response for NC State constituents.
- Generate funds that support student scholarships.
- Eventually work with North Carolina-based textile suppliers and manufacturers in product creation, with a focus on sustainability wherever achievable.
- Create products that are exclusive and unique in the marketplace
- Develop apparel brand loyalty and associated brand extensions unique to NC State.
- Be more responsive to market and fashion trends, while focusing on classic pieces.
As the owner of the private label, NC State will ultimately get to specify everything about the product — what goes in it, how it’s packaged, what the label looks like and more. An aspirational goal of The Belltower Collection is to have a product line that is, at least in part, designed, manufactured, merchandised and marketed by NC State students and faculty, in collaboration with North Carolina companies, and that is sold exclusively by NC State.
NC State officially launched a limited line of merchandise on Nov., 20, 2020, with plans to broaden the product line in a more robust Belltower Collection launch to coincide with the rededication of the University’s iconic Memorial Belltower in May 2021.
What Do Trademark Royalties Fund?
Proceeds from officially licensed merchandise make a real impact on our students! We share funding beyond athletics to include need-based and merit scholarships, as well as study-abroad programs. Not every school can say that — we’re proud that we can.
An additional benefit of an NC State private label being sold exclusively by our campus bookstore is that all retail sales and trademark licensing revenues will be realized by NC State. At NC State, the overwhelming majority of trademark licensing revenues provide scholarship support to NC State students. This is yet another way in which The Belltower Collection was truly created by NC State, for NC State.
SHOP THE COLLECTIONView Items from the Collection
The Art of the Belltower Collection
The Belltower Collection Logo Sheet
The Belltower Collection features the primary belltower mark as well as two secondary marks.
The 55 bells mark references the NC State Memorial Belltower carillon which consists of 55 bells, handcrafted by the B.A. Sunderlin Bellfoundry in Ruther Glen, Virginia.
The smallest bell is only 6 inches in diameter and weighs 16 pounds, ringing a high C. Purchased by the Class of 2010, the largest bell is a 45-inch F note, tipping the scales at more than 1800 pounds.
The 1921/2021 mark honors the year of the cornerstone placement and the year of the belltower's rededication. The Memorial Belltower, its cornerstone dating to 1921, honors NC State alumni who died through military service in World War I. This beloved site stands as an icon of our university and a symbol of our past, present and future.
Now a century later, the Belltower Collection celebrates the Legend in Store.
