Hats off to Briley King: The Trucker Hat Queen
Published on Nov. 18, 2024 at 6:21 p.m.
By Braden Barksdale.
Briley King is the wife of country singer Marcus King. She is also the face behind Little Bird Trucking.
In February 2023, Briley and Marcus got married. She quit her day-to-day job in finance and moved to Nashville. King started Little Bird Trucking in June of 2023.
On her website, King says, “Living on a tour bus, unsure of when I’d be able to wash and style my hair next, trucker hats became a wardrobe staple. I started collecting them through eBay, vintage stores, gas stations, merch stands, friends, you name it.”
King always wanted to have her own identity. After she married Marcus, Briley decided to pursue her passion: hats. On April 23, 2023, she shared a post that said, “new truckers.” Comments asking about her hat line flooded in on the post.
On June 28, 2023, she shared another post, “FIRST DROP this Friday, June 30 @ 12pm EST. littlebirdtrucking.com.” Again, those making comments wanted to know all the details about the hat drop.
King’s business has grown tremendously in the last year. She started as a one-person team, creating the hats by hand and shipping them out from her home, but recently she hired a team to improve the process. King has been extremely successful, and the hat drops constantly sell out. Although King is an independent, successful businesswoman, she has had some significant media placements that have helped her along the way.
Lainey Wilson’s support
Lainey Wilson is a country singer who has gained popularity in recent years. Wilson and Briley’s husband were writing a song together so Briley decided to send Wilson some hats. Since then, Wilson has posted several times wearing King’s hats — the most notable being her interview with Apple Music.
Wilson was also wearing a Little Bird Trucking hat during her “Hang Tight Honey” promotion video. Wilson has a massive following, and her influence in the country music industry is undeniable. By just wearing the hats, Wilson is a walking advertisement for Little Bird Trucking. This earned media placement is not only influencing fans to buy the hats but also other artists.
Post Malone’s support
Post Malone announced his transition into the country music world on June 18, 2024, with his “F-1 Trillion” album featuring several well-known country artists. Blake Shelton, Luke Combs, Dolly Parton, Tim McGraw and Brad Paisley were among some of the featured artists. This announcement garnered one million likes on his Instagram post. Post Malone’s conversion into a different genre of music allowed him to reach new fans.
Post Malone saw Wilson wearing a Little Bird Trucking hat while recording a Christmas special at Graceland. He loved the hat and asked Wilson where he could get one. Wilson informed Marcus that Post Malone wanted one. Briley sent him a ton of hats, and it has paid off. Post Malone wore the hat for the Video Music Awards and is photographed with Taylor Swift while wearing it. The post generated three million likes on Instagram.
Post Malone stopped at Robert’s Western Wear on Broadway in Nashville, Tennessee, also wearing the hat. In September 2024, he performed at Madison Square Garden with Jelly Roll while wearing the hat. He was also seen wearing the hat while recording his “Live from the Studio” series on YouTube. The hat is featured in Post Malone’s “Rolling Stone” article with Dwight Yoakam.
Needless to say, Post Malone is a Little Bird Trucking supporter. Like Wilson, he is promoting the brand, which in turn is accumulating new fans and followers for Little Bird Trucking.
Houston Rodeo, podcasts and magazines
Not only has King gained visibility through musicians but also through famous events. Just this last year, King partnered with the Houston Rodeo to create custom trucker hats. Inside the hat was a custom Houston Rodeo tag. Once the one-of-a-kind hats sold out, they were gone.
King has recently been on several podcasts as well, generating and reaching even more audiences. She is featured on the “Absolutely Not” podcast with Heather McMahan, the “Unlocked” podcast with Savannah Chrisley and “Diving in Deep” with country singer Sara Evans. In every episode, King gifts the host with a hat, and they instantly start talking about her successful business. King excels at using every opportunity to place her hats in media.
Last but certainly not least are magazines and online articles. The red Cadillac hat was featured on the cover of the “Cowboys and Indians” magazine. “Cowgirl” covered the hats in a blog titled “Top It Off: Unique Hats From Little Bird Trucking.” “City Lifestyle” featured King and her hats in its Brentwood Lifestyle edition.
By using her own media pages to promote her business and acquiring earned media, King’s one-woman business has been a successful venture. King is an inspiration to new business owners and proof that self-promotion works.
