Benchwarmer started on a cold metal bleacher in Ladue, Missouri — not in a boardroom.

In the fall of his sophomore year, co-founder Hans Kamat broke a bone in his foot and spent the rest of the soccer season sidelined in a boot, watching his team from the bench. As the weather turned, the metal bench got colder, and colder, and colder. By the time the team reached districts, sitting through a game had become its own kind of miserable.

Hans brought the problem home to his brother, Evan. The two of them — both lifelong club and varsity soccer players — started sketching out a solution by hand: a portable, battery-powered cushion that could strap onto any bench and actually keep you warm. They worked out the size, the strap placement, where the heating element and battery needed to sit, and how to make the whole thing tough enough for a sideline.

Turning the sketch into a real product took nearly six months of searching for the right manufacturing partner and finding a Saint Louis-based foam supplier.

Before it ever went on sale, Benchwarmer was tested the old-fashioned way: on friends, family, and eventually real youth soccer teams sitting on real cold sidelines.

Since then, the response has been better than the brothers ever expected. Benchwarmer took top honors at the national Young Entrepreneur Pitch Challenge and the Missouri AfterSchool Network Young Entrepreneur Pitch Challenge, and placed third at the international 2023 Diamond Challenge at the University of Delaware.

Today, Hans and Evan are working to bring Benchwarmer to parents, players, and coaches everywhere — with plans to add custom team logos and expand the lineup to heated gear beyond the bench.

Because nobody should have to choose between watching the game and feeling their toes.

Have a seat. Feel the heat.