Simpson Sports Engineering
What they do: Civil engineering firm specializing in sports facilities and athletics projects.
Address: 2048 Hollydale Avenue
The synthetic turf market has experienced steady growth across the U.S. as municipalities and schools embrace its promise of lower maintenance and year-round accessibility.
Zachary native Jesse Simpson, who formerly pitched in the minor leagues with the St. Louis Cardinals organization, parlayed his baseball career and business acumen into Simpson Sports Engineering, a firm that helps clients across the Gulf South update sports fields with artificial turf.
The idea took root in 2013, when Simpson was working with his civil engineer father on a project installing turf on a school sports field.
“The guy that owned the turf company was telling us, ‘Hey, there’s a real market for this. Schools are starting to put a lot more focus on it, but they don’t know where to start,’” Simpson says. “So, we developed a company that is built on educating [customers] about how to get these projects done.”
Simpson Sports Engineering manages the process for sports facility managers who often don’t have a construction background. “With turf being somewhat new, it’s not something that everyone’s educated on,” Simpson says.
Simpson Sports Engineering is licensed in 18 states and Simpson spends about 50% of his time developing relationships to keep a varied client mix.
Revenue has doubled each year, he says, with more facility managers seeing the value of investing in turf’s year-round capabilities. “Seeing a product that we’re designing and creating have an impact on the local community is very rewarding,” he says. “That’s one of the coolest parts of the job.”
