Give Me A Sale!

Promo Marketing is published out of Philadelphia. And here in Philly we know a little sumthin' sumthin' about about how to cheer on the home team. If you've ever seen Philly fans in action then you know all about the good, the bad and definitely the ugly. From pegging the Dallas Cowboys (we hate the Cowboys and we don't even know why) with snowballs from the bleachers, to the overwhelming necessity to set up a court room with an actual judge at the Eagles stadium to deal with the large volume of misdemeanors that occur during games, Philly fans know how to cheer and boo with gusto. Passion like this seeps into all facets of life and wearing the right spirit and fan apparel is an enormous part of fulfilling your obligation as a fan.

All the Hoopla
Patric Andersson, marketing director at Atlantic Coast Cotton, Gainesville, Va., explained it best. "Fans want to dress like their sports heroes. So the guys and gals on the field are driving demand among the guys and gals in the stands," he said. Examples of the truth to this statement are easy to find. After the Phillies won the World Series in 2008, this writer stepped into the eye of the hurricane and walked 20 or so blocks through the estimated 2 million fans that gathered throughout the city. Streets were impassable due to the throng of Phillies fans sporting red and white caps, jerseys, T-shirts, socks, shorts, sweatpants, hoodies, baseballs, face paint, balloons, horns, banners, all sporting favorite player names or team logos. You name the promotional product—if it was available in red and white it was there that day.

While the enormity of this event doesn't happen often, sports fan passion exists everywhere, from little leagues across America and the Friday-night lights of the high school football team to the corporate softball team and the weekly bowling league. Everyone loves to support the home team in their apparel and the variety of fun and spirited apparel products that are available to end-users is amazing. Bud Roberts, sales manager for Marathon/Prestige, New Philadelphia, Ohio, noted, "There are over 40,000 public schools, parochial schools and small colleges, as well as community colleges, in the USA. That is an awesome market."