Draper small business outfits Garth Brooks' crew with custom hats

DRAPER — A small business owner in Draper had an unexpected opportunity when country music superstar Garth Brooks came to Salt Lake City. The opportunity led to Friday night, when she brought her custom hats backstage at the Delta Center to outfit more than 100 members of his touring crew.

Avree Eveson, owner of The Hat Haus, a custom trucker hat business, said the experience was a pinch-me moment — especially when she got to meet Brooks himself.

"He came in and he had actually just finished playing basketball, and he's just a regular guy," Eveson said.

The Oct. 9 encounter included a lighthearted exchange between Brooks and Eveson's husband, who was helping her that night. Brooks was holding his Kobe basketball shoes when Eveson's husband complimented them.

"He was like, 'These Kobes are older than you, dude!'" Eveson said. "It was super cool to connect with people who live completely different lives from me but also completely normal lives."

Eveson started The Hat Haus, which she runs with help from her husband, to create custom trucker hats featuring personalized patches, many of which showcase Utah-inspired designs. Her shop offers customers a variety of patches to create hats that reflect their personalities, interests and connections to the Beehive State.

"I love this one: Utah's desert, sunburnt and stoked," Eveson said of one of her designs. "Anything to show off Utah, I really love it!"

About a month before Brooks' Salt Lake City appearance, Eveson received a call from the Delta Center asking her to bring her business backstage and create custom hats for Brooks' team.

She quickly designed a few new patches highlighting the tour's Salt Lake City stop. The hats featured custom details connected to Brooks' 2026 "Blame It All on My Roots" tour.

Eveson said she made hats for everyone from the chef to the band and was impressed by how many members of Brooks' crew have worked with him for more than 25 years.

The experience also included a special touch for Brooks' wife, country singer Trisha Yearwood, who was back home in Tennessee. Eveson said Brooks selected a hat for Yearwood with the patch "Lucky Wifey."

For Eveson, the experience went beyond making hats for a celebrity. It gave her a chance to showcase her small business with a crew that has spent decades on the road.

"I'm super grateful because I never thought when I started the Hat Haus that I'd be able to do anything anywhere close to something like that," Eveson said. "It was super meaningful because this showed how all my hard work just paid off the last four years."

Her only regret? Not asking Brooks for a picture.

And Brooks appeared to enjoy his time in Utah, too. During the concert, he said he was considering starting his next tour in Salt Lake City.

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