Wednesday, July 13, 2005
As of July 1, the University of Kansas Athletics Department told athletes they could no longer wear Nike apparel in the weight room or to workout in.
But the switch from Nike to adidas is taking a little longer to implement in merchandise stores. For KUStore.com, a company run by the Athletics Department, Nike gear still lingers in the office.
“We haven’t been told a certain date when we can no longer sell Nike,” said Jeff Hackel, assistant e-commerce manager. “Right now, we’re selling Nike at cost, or half price. We’re just going to keep selling it until it’s gone. There’s talk of a garage sale, which has been done in the past to get rid of older apparel, but it’s not for sure.”
Local bookstores are still able to sell some Nike gear, like hats and T-shirts. But if the apparel is something that the athletes would wear, then it has to be adidas.
Some of the adidas apparel might be hard to sell. Kristin Vickers, store manager of University Book Shop, 1116 W. 23rd St., talked with the company that owns University Book Shop, and also talked with 130 other companies. They informed her that as a group, 70 percent of merchandise sold is Nike, and 30 percent is adidas.
“Nike is pretty fashionable and looks good,” Vickers said. “The consumers want the Nike brand.”
Hackel said in comparison to Nike, adidas has a limited selection of apparel.
“From what I’ve seen, adidas is pretty generic,” Hackel said. “They have the same Kansas shirt for every sport, whereas with Nike, they produced a totally different line called Elite.”
After seeing the adidas catalog, Vickers said she was “a little apprehensive” about their clothing line. The size of the two catalogs is significantly different as well. The adidas one is quit a bit smaller, Hackel said.
There is also the shipping adjustment to be made. Hackel said that Stephanie Temple, head e-commerce manager who orders the apparel, was worried about adidas’ shipping schedule.
Hackel said Temple finally had the schedule with Nike figured out, and that she would now have to learn the adidas shipping schedule.
Knowing when items are coming in is crucial to business, especially when trying to get a certain item in for a big game.
Photo by Kerri Henderson
Brenda Bell, San Francisco, compares an adidas Kansas t-shirt (right) to a Nike one at Jock's Nitch Sporting Goods, 837 Massachusetts St. adidas just became the official supplier of Kansas sportswear; however, most of the adidas apparel will not be available in stores until August.
KUStore.com is not just an online company, but also sets up stands at all major sporting events.
“I’ve worked with Nike for the past five years, and never worked with adidas,” Vickers said. “I’m just hoping they deliver in time. We probably won’t know until September when we get all the gear in.”
Sales with adidas start just in time for football season. After the season starts, KUStore.com and bookstores may have an idea of what to expect.
“It’ll be interesting working with adidas,” Hackel said. “I think initially it’ll be good because it’s new.”
Several stores had expected to have new jerseys and shirts stocked by the July 4th weekend. adidas e-mailed The Sports Dome, 1000 Massachusetts St., and the Jayhawk Bookstore, 1420 Crescent Road, notifying them they would have to wait on the new apparel.
“This is a major setback in forming a healthy relationship,” said Bill Muggy, Jayhawk Bookstore owner.
Gabe Van Pelt contributed to this story.
— Edited by Erin M. Droste
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