Here, I trade pixels for punches and screens for stitches, handcrafting one-of-a-kind leather goods.
For over twenty years, I’ve built bold creative for pro sports teams—driving campaigns that make your heart pound. But behind every digital victory was a restless itch for something raw and hands-on. That’s why I launched Punched x Stitched as my unapologetic side hustle—while still leading creative strategy by day.
No mass production. No replicas. Just raw craftsmanship for the artists, the athletes, the outsiders and originals who refuse to blend in. Welcome to my side hustle—where every mark is as unique as you.
— Michael Benford
PUNCH FIRST
Is about leading with guts.
It’s taking the first swing. Choosing bold over safe.
Because no one remembers the ones who waited.
It means chasing the thing that lights you up.
The craft. The chaos. The call to create.
It’s how you put your mark on the world.
Not by talking about it. By doing it.
STITCH LATER
Is about doing the work that holds it all together.
The hours no one sees. The patience. The process. The precision.
The grit that holds it all together.
Because bold doesn’t matter without follow-through.
And passion doesn’t last without craft.
I build with my hands, for people who move with purpose. For the artists, the athletes, the outsiders, and originals. For those who refuse to fit in and know that raw doesn’t mean unfinished—It means real. It means honest. It means yours.
Michael Benford | Founder x Maker
