My name is Álvaro Palacio, and I’m the founder of Paramount Athletics here in Sugar Land, Texas. I am a certified personal trainer, and I am also the creator of the Phantom Grip Golf Gloves and the original Phantom Grip Fitness Gloves. I am happily married and have 2 daughters. I was born in the Republic of Panamá and moved to the US when I was a toddler. My family’s safety was threatened under the dictator Manuel Noriega at the time. When US troops were down in Panama, they helped me and my family escape danger. On a random day, a US official came rushing to our door warning of the threat. My mother only had time to pack one suitcase for all of us (herself, my dad, my sister, and me), and we were rushed to a US military base. We boarded a C-17 aircraft with US soldiers and came to the United States of America.

 

Before the full finger workout gloves, before the fitness journey, I started life in a one-bedroom apartment in Riverside, California. None of us in my family spoke English. With help from our neighbors, my parents were able to start a life. My father began as an auto-mechanic while my mother took care of my sister and me at home. My uncle was living in Memphis, Tennessee around the same time working for a well-known delivery service. To be closer to family, we moved there. My father continued working as a mechanic and over-time, he was able to start his own auto repair business. My mother went on to become a teacher. I remember growing up, we only had one car and a lot of times my mother and I took the city bus to get around town. She worked incredibly hard to get all the necessary paperwork completed needed to teach at schools. There was a lot of back and forth, whether she was missing documents or needed to complete another step. She was resilient, determined, and never gave up. What is even more important and admirable was watching both my mother and father become citizens of the United States. I remember my sisters and I helping them study and learn about our government. It was a special moment when we all became naturalized citizens of the United States of America. Through the years of teaching and hard work, my mother earned her Doctorate’s Degree in Education. She taught at a high school and at a university throughout her teaching career. She is now officially retired after many years of working as a teacher.

 

I have always had a strong passion for sports, health, and fitness growing up. Since I was just a little boy, I played some type of sport. Basketball, golf, soccer, tennis, triathlon, marathon, sprinter, you name it. I always spent time outside. I never really watched television Saturday mornings and drinking water with my breakfast was not uncommon for me. Instead, after eating, I rushed out the door and met up with my neighborhood friends to start a game of baseball or roller blade hockey in our cul de sac. My dad even got me a personal trainer for golf beginning in the second grade. I learned everything there was to know about the sport. After school, I spent time on the driving range learning about each golf club. I never played professionally or in a league, but it eventually became a fun hobby that I enjoy to this day.

 

Looking back, it is really clear to me that this is truly where my heart lies: in sports, health, and fitness. I remember even back in middle school constantly telling one of my good friends to stop drinking Dr. Pepper because it was not healthy. As an athlete, I quickly realized the importance of fitness and nutrition as it relates to performance. I took a leap of faith early 2019 to pursue an idea that would help improve training for athletes and fitness enthusiasts of all ages – the development of the Phantom Grip Gloves. The idea was to improve grip so a person could train more efficiently. Specifically, we are able to maximize time under tension when we are able to hold onto weights for longer periods of time. After testing this theory, I had discovered promising results, and I quickly moved on to the next step to improve the aesthetics. I had drawn multiple designs of the gloves and logo on several sheets of paper and index cards until I was satisfied with the final design. Not long after launching, customers began using these fitness gloves for golf, and after several requests, I designed the Phantom Grip Golf Gloves.​

 

My wife was about 8 months pregnant with our first child when I decided to quit my full-time job and pursue this idea of mine. It was not easy and truthfully, it was scary. All of my life since graduating with an MBA, I had some type of secure job. My wife knew the ultimate plan, but she did not know exactly when I was going to actually go for it. She came home one day after work, and I told her the news unexpectedly. To be honest, there was a moment of silence between the both of us, perhaps, even for a few days. I am one lucky man to have the wife I have. She came in with ideas and with full support. I started from scratch. I bought a camera and a laptop. I designed the website on my own and used my camera to take pictures of my gloves. Everything has been trial and error. Each day, I learned something new. I still do.

 

After our first daughter was born, that’s where things got even more challenging. I spent countless hours working with little to no sleep. Sometimes I would work at awkward times of the night because that was the only time when the house was quiet enough for me to focus. A lot of times I would have my daughter on my lap while on the computer. Whether she was on my lap or in her rocker, she was by my side most of the time while I started Paramount Athletics. Both were born in the same year, and this is why Paramount Athletics, the golf gloves, and the fitness gloves are that much more meaningful to me.

 

I officially launched Paramount Athletics on October 22, 2019. It was a slow start selling my fitness gloves. Each day, I improved one thing on the website. If I did not make a change on my website, I changed my strategy. Again, trial and error. A few months later, the gloves started to really move. I had reached customers from California all the way to Norway! The best way for me to continue to succeed was to listen to my customers. I created anonymous surveys to see what they liked, did not like, feedback, and suggestions for new ideas. It was not long after until some of these customers started using the fitness gloves for golf. I remember seeing one person comment on a social media post asking if there were plans of a golf glove coming out. A conversation stemmed from that. Another customer posted a photo using the fitness glove during a recreational golf game. That is when I promised I would work on a golf glove design. It took a while, but I managed to draw something on paper that made functional sense while improving the existing golf glove. The first thing I have always noticed when putting on a golf glove is that everything is practically sealed. In other words, air is always trapped on the inside of the glove making the hand sweaty. I had to find a way to create ventilation for the palm without sacrificing the integrity of the traditional golf glove. I designed the center of the glove with 4-way stitching to help with more mobility of the hand while letting moisture escape the palm of the hand. I figured if there is less sweat, there is less friction, and this, as a result, helps to improve grip. On the outside of the glove, I decided to use mesh. After playing a few rounds with the prototype, I immediately felt a difference playing in warmer weather. My hand did not get as hot and sweaty compared to other brands I used like Callaway or Titleist. I took the same concept from my sports gloves used for fitness and applied it to the golf glove. I used the same silicone material on the inside hand and incorporated it to the golf glove. It is strategically placed exactly where the golf club rests. So, as a result, you get maximum grip with no slippage on your golf swing. The other feature I included was the touchscreen capability. Sometimes golfers do need to take important phone calls or reply to messages. Whether it is from family or work-related, if the message is urgent, you are able to text with the gloves on. Although this is not a necessity, I feel like it is a nice little touch that separates the glove I designed from others out there.

 

Fast forward to today, my family assists in every way possible with new ideas, marketing strategies, and even order fulfillment when orders are heavy or if I am traveling. My daughters help too even though they are both under 5 years old. It's a good teaching opportunity. We count, we practice letters when looking for sizes, and I teach them supply chain in its simplest form. Sometimes, they will go with me to UPS or the Post Office to drop off orders so they can actually see the process. They really enjoy it. My goal is to one day assign them specific roles, have them work by my side, and help me grow Paramount Athletics globally - a true family-ran business. 

 

We aim to process all golf glove and workout glove orders within 24 hours to ensure fast delivery. Additionally, I handwrite a personal thank you note on every order. Each order placed helps improve Paramount Athletics in some way. A hand-written note allows me to express personal gratitude and appreciation for you, our customer and friend, while establishing a connection even if we are hundreds of miles apart. Thank you so much for supporting our small business, and please, never hesitate to contact me if you have any feedback or questions about the golf gloves, workout gloves, or any of our products.

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Respectfully,

Álvaro