NASCAR evaluating souvenir row

I've bought a few things at the track but I always buy an event pin. Oh, and lots and lots of hotdogs. Especially Martinsville. I have roughly 10 of those per race.
 
ChexOrWrex said:
Being a soldier is riskier than playing football. But who still gets paid more?
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Its not possible for me to compare the men and women that fight for our freedom to football players or race car drivers, I just cant do it
 
Kyle18fan said:
Its not possible for me to compare the men and women that fight for our freedom to football players or race car drivers, I just cant do it
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Nor should you be asked to or try. Sometimes "pay" is not just monetary. Sometimes "pay" cannot be measured.
 
The idea of a tent with all the drivers gear makes me wonder because of several things;
1) you are adding a layer to the already crowded profit split. Now you will have a vendor that you have to pay a portion of the proceeds. Right now, the teams get all the money. This means prices will go up even more;
2) There are more than t-shirts and hats at a hauler. There are decals, key chains, diecasts, sweat shirts, men's wear, women's wear, kid's wear, shot glasses... is the "tent" going to stock all of it;
3) Will there be the variety of merchandise for each driver that is on the hauler or will it two t-shirts and two hats for your choice?
4) What about the lower tier drivers who don't have all the clout and share one hauler now? Will their swag be in the "tent";
5) Years ago, I counted as many as four Earnhardt souvenir haulers and four Jeff Gordon. Will there be several tents? If so, then it will take as many haulers as it does now;
6) The souvenir rigs pull up, plug in and open the sides and they are ready for business. Many drivers also sign autographs at the haulers. What happens in a tent? Will bad weather blow down the tents? Will the drivers show up in one or more tents?
7) Will the tents be owned by the vendor and travel from race to race? The size of the "mega tent" shopping makes finding local tents iffy at best. And who are they going to hire to sell the stuff? The team souvenir haulers are people hired by the teams. And you get to know them. Last thing I want is to buy my stuff from some local pimply faced kid who doesn't give a rat's ass;
8) What about returns? With a team hauler, you at least have some recourse.

My point is this... once again. NASCAR takes a not-so-good situation and makes it worse, with what seems to be a profit margin in mind. I have an idea... cut ticket prices, and cut the costs of the souvenirs. Why do I want to pay $35 for a t-shirt and $195 for a jacket that I can find at a Love's Truck Stop for half the price (I try not to promote the business of Wally World). Try keeping in mind that fans are not coming to the track because hotel gouge prices, gas prices are going up constantly and we are being asked to pay exorbitant prices for food at the tracks. How about keeping the Joe Average fan in mind. Remember this is beer and chip crowd, not the champagne and caviar of Formula 1.
 
I was at Daytona yesterday and CGR,RPM and MWR were all using one trailer for their merchandise...
 
KevinWI said:
They're not making money, kylefan, that's why they're discussing changing it. I guess th
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Attendance and ratings wouldn't be down (at least not to the extent it is now) if they never started changing things in the first place.
 
pnance26 said:
The idea of a tent with all the drivers gear makes me wonder because of several things;
1) you are adding a layer to the already crowded profit split. Now you will have a vendor that you have to pay a portion of the proceeds. Right now, the teams get all the money. This means prices will go up even more;
2) There are more than t-shirts and hats at a hauler. There are decals, key chains, diecasts, sweat shirts, men's wear, women's wear, kid's wear, shot glasses... is the "tent" going to stock all of it;
3) Will there be the variety of merchandise for each driver that is on the hauler or will it two t-shirts and two hats for your choice?
4) What about the lower tier drivers who don't have all the clout and share one hauler now? Will their swag be in the "tent";
5) Years ago, I counted as many as four Earnhardt souvenir haulers and four Jeff Gordon. Will there be several tents? If so, then it will take as many haulers as it does now;
6) The souvenir rigs pull up, plug in and open the sides and they are ready for business. Many drivers also sign autographs at the haulers. What happens in a tent? Will bad weather blow down the tents? Will the drivers show up in one or more tents?
7) Will the tents be owned by the vendor and travel from race to race? The size of the "mega tent" shopping makes finding local tents iffy at best. And who are they going to hire to sell the stuff? The team souvenir haulers are people hired by the teams. And you get to know them. Last thing I want is to buy my stuff from some local pimply faced kid who doesn't give a rat's ass;
8) What about returns? With a team hauler, you at least have some recourse.

My point is this... once again. NASCAR takes a not-so-good situation and makes it worse, with what seems to be a profit margin in mind. I have an idea... cut ticket prices, and cut the costs of the souvenirs. Why do I want to pay $35 for a t-shirt and $195 for a jacket that I can find at a Love's Truck Stop for half the price (I try not to promote the business of Wally World). Try keeping in mind that fans are not coming to the track because hotel gouge prices, gas prices are going up constantly and we are being asked to pay exorbitant prices for food at the tracks. How about keeping the Joe Average fan in mind. Remember this is beer and chip crowd, not the champagne and caviar of Formula 1.
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Are you sure the teams get all the money? The article states that teams get 10%, tracks get 15% and the distributor (Motorsports Authentics) gets 75%.
 
Marcingak said:
Are you sure the teams get all the money? The article states that teams get 10%, tracks get 15% and the distributor (Motorsports Authentics) gets 75%.
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You are correct and I stand corrected. Someday, if anyone cares, I can tell you how this whole merchandising merry-go-round got started and why DAle Earnhardt made MILLIONS in the deal and why you can't buy Racing Champions diecast at KMart, etc...

If you want to know, I will share. if not, okay
 
I for one always look forward to visiting souveneir row, for me it's a big part of the weekend. The trucks always have stuff that you can't find anywhere else not to mention the local gift shop at whichever the race is at that weekend always has a lousy selection & usually only has the big name drivers. For instance, at a race I went to this season, there was a truck there that had firesuit jackets for Almirola & Jamie McMurray. I didn't even know jackets had been made for those guys.
 
I dont think they should get rid of the trailers, but it is a bit un-organized. They need some sort of queue like they have at department store cash registers so that its not just a mob of people standing around fighting to be next to purchase. They had a few big tents at Daytona this weekend setup like actual merchandise stores and those work ok I guess. I would think theft would be hard to control though.
 
KahneFan said:
Yeah exactly, they advertise Mooresville as Race City, USA but there are hardly anything to do with racing here.

Hell, the only cup teams here are Penske and Germain racing, the rest are around the concord area mostly.
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Because a lot of the teams used to be located right there in Mooresville. When I worked for RPM, Lakeside had Penkse, Kranfuss-Haas, Remington, Bahari Racing, Roush, RPM, and a few others. Not to mention the other teams scattered around Mooresville. Over time teams closed, consolidated, or just flat out moved.

There are still a handful of teams in Mooresville, including nationwide and truck teams. But if they could sell the gear in Mooresville, they would. No one is buying it.

There's a reason why the Nascar store at Concord Mills closed....

When I worked at RPM in the last 90s I worked mainly in the souvenir side of the business. Rudd owned his own souvenir trailer and everything, a good majority of his sales came from the truck.
 
Brain has consulted with Omar the tent maker. No more trucks. Only tents sold by brain as the official tent supplier to na$car will be allowed.
Helton and Pemberton are scheduled for a steel cage death match to see who will be supplying the official Na$car folding tables.
btw you will not get a receipt, if you get one that means the merchant has a copy of the sale and the IRS gets involved. Cash in front pocket sales only...
 
Nate Ryan reporting that this is a dine deal. :(

Thanks for ruining yet another NASCAR tradition.

@nateryan

As expected, #nascar overhauls merchandise midway in 2015 with a shopping mall-style. Will be intriguing how layout is molded to each track.
 
@nateryan

No; will be walk-in tents arranged in "a courtyard-style, mall layout." RT @Cody2488 No more merchandise haulers at all? #nascar
 
Dramatic overhaul coming to NASCAR souvenir sales

Matt-Kenseth-Shop.jpeg.main.png


Fanatics' compelling vision for at-track experience ready for growth

The new Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup playoff format that debuted last season was a dramatic shift that ramped up the pressure and drama of the 10-race postseason. This season, the debut of a new partnership intends to bring the same game-changing dynamic to a different aspect of the fan experience: souvenir shopping. NASCAR and NASCAR Team Properties jointly announced

Wednesday a 10-year agreement with Fanatics to conduct its fan merchandise operations at every NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race. The new partnership -- which has been met with support from teams and tracks across the industry -- includes sweeping plans to transform the sales of memorabilia from an allotment of walk-up trailers to a walk-in assortment of tents in a courtyard-style mall layout.

read the rest here
 
Is the driver still the owner of his display?
Does Junior get 5 spaces? :D
 
They've had one of those big merchandise tents inside the Fan Zone at DIS for years. Not a bad setup for that particular area but I don't know how they can fit all of the people who buy outside the track into a few of those.
 
That'll put an end to my merchandise browsing. I'll kick back with a BL and let the wife brave the storm.
 
dpkimmel2001 said:
I'm still trying to figure out why shopping in a 'Walmart type' atmosphere is going to be appealing to the fans over strolling along souvenir row.

I guess I'll find out @ Martinsville.
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Well, for one thing, we'll be out of the sun / rain. On the other hand, I don't see how they're going to prevent shoplifting.

I attended a PGA event last summer where they used tents for souvenir sales. I didn't find it any more or less appealing than walking between haulers. I saw the same variety and types of merchandise as at the track.

Are we really concerned with the size and shape of container they use to separate us from our money? Is this going to affect how much we spend? Not me.
 
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One other stroke of Nascar brilliance will be the updated Nascar concession stands.
NASCAR cares about the environment and as part of its green initiative condiments packaged in paper will no longer be utilized.

Salt-Licks and Pepper-Lick blocks will be installed near each stand. Providing an unlimited supply of Salt for any paying customer in need on a first come first serve basis. Nascar fans will be thrilled to know the paper trash has been eliminated.

http://www.yourdictionary.com/salt-lick

There are many positives and even unintended good results and perks . Shareholders will earn an extra $0.21 per share as a result of this green initiative.

It will get even better in 2016 at the tracks, after the green paperless toilet paper program is implemented into the non VIP track facilities.

Just a few of the many new upcoming enhancements for fans and shareholders to enjoy.
 
Charlie Spencer said:
I attended a PGA event last summer where they used tents for souvenir sales. I didn't find it any more or less appealing than walking between haulers. I saw the same variety and types of merchandise as at the track.

Are we really concerned with the size and shape of container they use to separate us from our money? Is this going to affect how much we spend? Not me.
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You can also buy an official Tiger Woods souvenir tooth at one of those PGA Tiger tents now.
 
Don't know what was awesome about the trailers, but there was something. I'm inclined to buy online.
 
I've also got to wonder how this is going to increase sales. When we go to the haulers to purchase merchandise at the track, we already have in mind what we want. If I walk into this tent to go purchase my Dale Jr. can koozie, I'm not going to buy that Kyle Busch seat cushion just because I see it on the shelf in the next isle.
 
dpkimmel2001 said:
I've also got to wonder how this is going to increase sales. When we go to the haulers to purchase merchandise at the track, we already have in mind what we want. If I walk into this tent to go purchase my Dale Jr. can koozie, I'm not going to buy that Kyle Busch seat cushion just because I see it on the shelf in the next isle.
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If you only buy what you already had in mind, then it doesn't matter which method they use. On the other hand, many people are prone to impulse buying. It's a lot easier to see that Kyle cushion on the next aisle than it is to seek out trailer.

One huge advantage is going to be single checkout. Say you want the Jr. koozie, your spouse wants the Kyle cushion, your smart kid wants the #20 T-shirt, and your dumb kid wants a #24 hat. Under the trailer method, you have to stand in line four times, once at each trailer, waiting for one of maybe three people to get to you, then conduct four transactions. With tents, you browse at your convenience, without waiting on a salesman to hand you stuff, then stand in one line at a bank of multiple registers to pay once.
 
Charlie Spencer said:
If you only buy what you already had in mind, then it doesn't matter which method they use. On the other hand, many people are prone to impulse buying. It's a lot easier to see that Kyle cushion on the next aisle than it is to seek out trailer.

One huge advantage is going to be single checkout. Say you want the Jr. koozie, your spouse wants the Kyle cushion, your smart kid wants the #20 T-shirt, and your dumb kid wants a #24 hat. Under the trailer method, you have to stand in line four times, once at each trailer, waiting for one of maybe three people to get to you, then conduct four transactions. With tents, you browse at your convenience, without waiting on a salesman to hand you stuff, then stand in one line at a bank of multiple registers to pay once.
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In your scenario, I'd be divorced and childless.
 
To me the merch trailers have a carnival feel, kinda like a midway. Putting everything under a tent is not in my opinion a exciting shopping atmosphere.
 
The Jeff Gordon retirement subject brings up another problem with the NASCAR Tent Sale idea. Now when I go to buy my Dale Jr. beer koozie @ Martinsville I'll have to stand in line behind all of the Jeff Gordon fans buying the Jeff Gordon Retirement Tour T-Shirts. Damn! They better get Jeff a whole other tent to sell his stuff. Wait, maybe rather than a tent, they just sell his stuff right out the back of a hauler. If they could only fashion some way to open up the side of the hauler they could sell to multiple Jeff Gordon fans at the same time. They could probably park this hauler in a separate location from other haulers so that Jeff Gordon fans could identify it and know right where to go to buy his Jeff Gordon Retirement Tour T-Shirts. I think you know where I'm going with this. Maybe what we have in place isn't quite so bad after all. ;)
 
http://motorsportstalk.nbcsports.co...g-set-to-change-as-part-of-new-fanatics-deal/

Fanatics’ apparel division will also produce its own NASCAR merchandise

That is weird to me because they would be in competition with the current distributors.

That aside, I've been searching on-line sites for a Dale Jr jacket with his new Nationwide sponsor and can't find anything. Also the selections in jackets is very poor. And, I have two 88 diecast orders from last year that haven't been shipped yet. I'm not use to not being able to get Dale Jr merchandise. What's up with that?

As far as the tent vs haulers is concerned, trolling the haulers is part of the track experience. We get to the track early to avoid most of the traffic and need some entertainment before the race. I think I'm going to miss the haulers.
 
Charlie Spencer said:
My wife isn't a race fan at all, but she tags along on rare occasions. The biggest disappointment she's experienced at the track was making a beeline to Kyle Busch's hauler, only to find they did not sell ... M&M's.
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ROTFL :XXROFL:
 
Are fans of other sports as averse to change as NASCAR fans?

Just because we were used to things being a certain way doesn't mean it was the best way. Standing in front of those tractor trailers sucked. The merch was very limited, they are slow and you could get a good look at anything. At least now we can go to one area, gather our merch and pay in once place all at once. At least give it a chance before hating with a kneejerk.
 
OK, I'm now thinking I might like the big tent better. One irritating thing about the haulers was trying to get a look at what merchandise was available without standing in line just to find out they don't have what I'm looking for.
 
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