Battle Bells, a local company founded by a Mississippi State University alumni in 2012, makes a loud entrance onto Starkville’s business scene with the sale of the first indestructible cowbell.
John Howell, MSU graduate and founder of Battle Bells, said he and his business partner Stephen Caples have an entrepreneurial drive and use the cowbell to fuel their passion. 
As an Ole Miss fan growing up, the cowbell took on a different meaning for Howell as he converted to a State fan and eventually student. 
“Going to the games, I never had a cowbell given to me. Both of my parents were Ole Miss fans, so I had to go buy one of the cowbells like everybody else,” he said.
Howell said as he came in contact with bells during his time at MSU, he began to think he could improve the symbolic instrument.
“It is such an important part of Mississippi State history, heritage and tradition,” Howell said. “That’s how we started.”
Howell, who graduated from MSU in 2010 with a business degree in finance and economics, said the response Battle Bells has earned could not be better. He emphasizes the help he received from MSU’s Entrepreneurship Center Advisory Board in particular.
“We have had nothing but great feedback from customers, fans and the university, who are 100 percent behind us. We have worked hand-in-hand with Mississippi State ECAB. Parker Stewart has been a huge help,” he said. “We actually received a $2,000 grant from the ECAB last week.”
Caples, who graduated from MSU in 2012 with a degree in business information systems, said he and Howell knew they wanted to start a business after their time at MSU, during which they came up with the idea for Battle Bells.
“It just kind of came to us one night, and we thought, ‘Maybe we should try cowbells. Let’s give it a shot,’” Caples said.
Battle Bells offers products that cannot be found anywhere else. Their cowbells stand apart from competitors because they are stainless steel, handmade locally and taller than most. The bell also includes an interchangeable wooden handle in different stains and a lifetime warranty against damage to the bell body.
 
“We made it with the intention of being passed down from generation to generation, not just a cowbell that you are going to use for a year or two that is going to break,” Howell said.
The founders of Battle Bells spent eight months designing the bell by taking apart other bells. 
“We literally destroyed it and found everything that was bad and wrong with it and did the opposite. This is what came out of doing that,” Howell said.
One of the main problems Howell said he noticed with other cowbells is a clanker that falls out, which is why Battle Bells are manufactured with a reinforced clanker assembly. 
“(It’s) something that will be in the family for a really long time,” he said.
Battle Bells can be purchased online and at several local retailers, including Reeds, Campus Bookmart and Stromboli’s. The Battle Bell cowbell is the first product sold at Stromboli’s that isn’t Italian food.
“That’s one of my favorite restaurants. I think the majority of people around Starkville feel the same way. So, for them to actually take on the Battle Bell, it really meant a lot to us,” Howell said.
Tim Turman, owner of Stromboli’s, said he has sold Battle Bells in his restaurant for about a month. He said he believes the high-grade cowbells will appeal to his clientele, which includes students, graduates and professionals.
Turman said the bells’ quality makes them a sentimental product that will last a lifetime, as opposed to others that will deteriorate.
“You are not going to damage this bell,” he said.
Turman said he has high hopes for Battle Bells because of the hard work they have put into their bells.
Howell said MSU fans will not have sore arms from ringing the stainless steel cowbell.
“It really doesn’t take a lot of work to ring it because it is the loudest bell on the market,” he said.
Howell said one of his favorite pieces of feedback was from a customer in Atlanta, Ga. 
According to Howell, the customer wrote, “Got mine today. Wow, yes, it will be heard. Most of Atlanta just did. You could send earplugs with it.”
The company does, in fact, send earplugs with purchase of a cowbell on their website, battlebells.com.