Fanatics Tent

Charlie Spencer said:
Thanks. Everyone's entitled to an opinion, but in this case I pay more attention to those who've tried both methods.
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I guess I'm confused. I thought his description of his comparison of the two implied that he had been to both? :idunno: Maybe I'm reading more into his post.

Me, I've been to both. I still prefer the trailers.
 
dpkimmel2001 said:
I guess I'm confused. I thought his description of his comparison of the two implied that he had been to both? :idunno: Maybe I'm reading more into his post.

Me, I've been to both. I still prefer the trailers.
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I agree that the post read as if he'd done both. We've all see posts from people who have only seen one side of the coin but talk like they've seen both.

Me, I'm a tent man. It's easier for this short guy to see the merchandise, especially the small items that I couldn't see at the trucks until I worked my way to the front. I like not having to compete with 12 other people for a sales person's attention. I like being able to check out once, no matter how many driver's gear I've picked up.

To each his own.
 
DIDIT said:
Yep, been in the tent(s) many times...but, maybe never again.
That reminds me, I remember Daytona having a huge souvenir tent years ago. Now it was literally cool...because it had A/C. :)
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Yeah that's the one they've relocated to the fanzone in the infield I believe, I went to it a few times when it was outside the track myself.
 
Going to The Glen again next Sunday and I am hoping it's still the tent. I thought tents were a much better experience to be able to look around and actually hold what your going to buy
 
I get my merch online now through team websites or driver websites, especially after the Larson tweets last month where drivers get a bigger cut if you go through those two avenues as opposed to fanatics. I also feel websites have bigger selection
 
Snappy D said:
I get my merch online now through team websites or driver websites, especially after the Larson tweets last month where drivers get a bigger cut if you go through those two avenues as opposed to fanatics. I also feel websites have bigger selection
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Websites are always going to have a better selection; they don't have to pick it all up and move it around every week.
 
BradBlaney said:
Going to The Glen again next Sunday and I am hoping it's still the tent. I thought tents were a much better experience to be able to look around and actually hold what your going to buy
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I doubt the tent will be there. Once the decision was made to go back to the trailers I think it is irreversible for the rest of the year because of personnel reasons.
 
BradBlaney said:
Going to The Glen again next Sunday and I am hoping it's still the tent. I thought tents were a much better experience to be able to look around and actually hold what your going to buy
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Were any tents still used? We're going to Darlington and like you I prefer the tents. I found a nice Darlington hat on Fanatics website and ordered it. It arrived and the crown was sewn about an inch off center on the bill.

I would rather be able to look through the merchandise and not be handed one and be expected to move along like at the trailers.
 
Good luck with the line.
 

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dadair6 said:
Were any tents still used? We're going to Darlington and like you I prefer the tents. I found a nice Darlington hat on Fanatics website and ordered it. It arrived and the crown was sewn about an inch off center on the bill.

I would rather be able to look through the merchandise and not be handed one and be expected to move along like at the trailers.
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Nope haulers and only three Hendrick drivers had lone haulers everybody else were mashed in with their team which meant not much of a selection, but the Glen has the Pyramid 'brick and mortar' type store where you can hold items and they have driver and track related stuff, Darlington I am sure has the same thing
 
Darlington has one small "tent" and all haulers. There were definitely less people looking/buying at the haulers compared to the tents of the past. The last two years the tents were packed and the line was long, although it moved quickly. Today, we walked right up to the track, Jr. and Larson trailers with no more than one or two people at each.

I'd be curious to see a comparison of sales from tent and haulers. From what I've seen today it might not be pretty. Will this be a case of people wanting the nostalgia, but not willing to spend money? Just like everybody clamoring for the return of Rockingham and Wilkesboro, especially when Rockingham tried to make another go of it and nobody supported it.
 
dadair6 said:
Darlington has one small "tent" and all haulers. There were definitely less people looking/buying at the haulers compared to the tents of the past. The last two years the tents were packed and the line was long, although it moved quickly. Today, we walked right up to the track, Jr. and Larson trailers with no more than one or two people at each.

I'd be curious to see a comparison of sales from tent and haulers. From what I've seen today it might not be pretty. Will this be a case of people wanting the nostalgia, but not willing to spend money? Just like everybody clamoring for the return of Rockingham and Wilkesboro, especially when Rockingham tried to make another go of it and nobody supported it.
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I have a question , what was the time frame in which there were only a few people at each of the trailer?
 
jws926 said:
I have a question , what was the time frame in which there were only a few people at each of the trailer?
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Throughout the afternoon. We were in the area at 10:30am, 1pm, 3pm and 5pm.
 
dadair6 said:
Throughout the afternoon. We were in the area at 10:30am, 1pm, 3pm and 5pm.
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I don't understand this. Every race we went to so far this year the trailers were extremely busy, lines everywhere, every time we went by them.
 
dadair6 said:
Darlington has one small "tent" and all haulers. There were definitely less people looking/buying at the haulers compared to the tents of the past. The last two years the tents were packed and the line was long, although it moved quickly. Today, we walked right up to the track, Jr. and Larson trailers with no more than one or two people at each.

I'd be curious to see a comparison of sales from tent and haulers. From what I've seen today it might not be pretty. Will this be a case of people wanting the nostalgia, but not willing to spend money? Just like everybody clamoring for the return of Rockingham and Wilkesboro, especially when Rockingham tried to make another go of it and nobody supported it.
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That's odd, at New Hampshire the popular driver's trailers were 5 to 6 deep most of the time.
 
Johali said:
I don't understand this. Every race we went to so far this year the trailers were extremely busy, lines everywhere, every time we went by them.
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Really the only trailers with long lines were Racing Electronics. I was really surprised at the lack of lines.

To get from the parking area to the pits and our seats we had to walk through the hauler area so it wasn't like we looked from afar. I didn't expect to buy any souvenirs because I don't stand in unorganized "lines", but there weren't any lines to begin with.
 
If I'm understanding this right, 3 to 4 haulers for 8 race teams means condensed stock and variety. It also means double or even triple long lines just waiting to even see what's for sale, try on a hat, etc. Someone please explain to me how this is better than a self-serve superstore tent cause I still don't see it. I can even live with each driver having their own hauler like last year. This has disaster written all over it though.

 
Daytona will utilize trailers, tents and their stores. If there’s less people going to races again I would expect changes in the summer.
 
somehow this will be a huge problem, it sure won't attract the millennial's, much less the casual fans, and it could affect the TV contract.
 
dpkimmel2001 said:
Fanatics sure didn't end their trackside deal 4 years into a 10 year contract because they were turning a profit. Either the entire concept was a failure or the lack of 'at track' fans proved to be their demise.
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They had 3 teams to set up the tent. The tent was up about 2 weeks before the race.Fanatics had to pay for their hotels, car rentals and wages. The cashiers and helpers were local people.What they didn't expect was people stealing merchandise since it was so easy. With diecasts out people were taking them out to check them out. As people did it they damaged the box. Instead of selling it for $60 they had to sell it for less than $45. They had to hire more help. When Fanatics was getting interested in Nascar they looked at numbers from 2013. Attendance was higher. Less people attending = less merchandise sales. With Gordon, Stewart retiring it hurt a lot. Jr fans spent the most. I think in 07 the average Jr fan spent about $77 on merchandise when they attended a race. They number went down to $49 in 2015. Their projections were way off.
 
AdoubleU24 said:
If I'm understanding this right, 3 to 4 haulers for 8 race teams means condensed stock and variety. It also means double or even triple long lines just waiting to even see what's for sale, try on a hat, etc. Someone please explain to me how this is better than a self-serve superstore tent cause I still don't see it. I can even live with each driver having their own hauler like last year. This has disaster written all over it though.

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3-4 haulers for HMS and JRM should work. I imagine Chase and Jimmie will each get their own. Maybe split one between Byron and Bowman and then one for the JRM merch.

Edit: That said, the Fanatics tent never really affected me anyways. I'm not a huge merch guy, usually if I buy I just buy off of the team's web site. The tent that Daytona has for their own merch in the infield Fan Zone has usually been fine to navigate IMO.
 
I just buy a hat I want online from nascarsuperstore.com...I’ve also had good luck with the actual team websites or driver websites themselves. No need to wait in a line at the track for driver merch when I could be investigating the food options at said track.
 
AdoubleU24 said:
If I'm understanding this right, 3 to 4 haulers for 8 race teams means condensed stock and variety. It also means double or even triple long lines just waiting to even see what's for sale, try on a hat, etc. Someone please explain to me how this is better than a self-serve superstore tent cause I still don't see it. I can even live with each driver having their own hauler like last year. This has disaster written all over it though.

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You are being sarcastic right? They went to a business model (the tent) that didn't work. For reasons throughout this thread there were fans that disliked the tent and preferred the haulers. The decision was made to go back to a proven business model. Sure there are problems with the hauler model, but there is no perfect solution.
 
DIDIT said:
You are being sarcastic right? They went to a business model (the tent) that didn't work. For reasons throughout this thread there were fans that disliked the tent and preferred the haulers. The decision was made to go back to a proven business model. Sure there are problems with the hauler model, but there is no perfect solution.
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No I'm speaking from my own personal experience and preference. I don't enjoy standing and waiting in long lines baking in the sun just for the opportunity to see what's for sale. Never mind having to wait on someone to hand you items back and forth across a counter so you can see it up close, touch it, or try it on for fit while feeling like you're holding up everyone behind you while they're also baking in the sun and waiting to do what you're doing. As a consumer I enjoy self service, quality, and a wide variety of options. The tent gave me those things.
 
AdoubleU24 said:
No I'm speaking from my own personal experience and preference. I don't enjoy standing and waiting in long lines baking in the sun just for the opportunity to see what's for sale. Never mind having to wait on someone to hand you items back and forth across a counter so you can see it up close, touch it, or try it on for fit while feeling like you're holding up everyone behind you while they're also baking in the sun and waiting to do what you're doing. As a consumer I enjoy self service, quality, and a wide variety of options. The tent gave me those things.
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If I may,I stood in those long lines at the hauler waiting for a Jeff Gordon hat and even longer waiting for a Jr hat. I always perused NASCAR.com to see that years pit hat or shirts it saved me some time when I eventually got to the front of those lines because I already knew what I wanted. I feel the haulers are better way to get merch over the tent if you want to buy at track but not by much, those lines were awful back when people actually went to races
 
Lines at the haulers have never been a problem for us at any track. We show up early and get there within an hour after the gates open and make a full day of it.
 
I posted a short review of my trip through Martinsville's Fanatics Tent setup a couple years back.....

https://racing-forums.com/threads/race-pics-and-experiences.52625/#post-927360

I didn't find the shopping experience to be any more fan friendly than the traditional hauler type shopping. More selection, yeah possibly. The isles were tight and tightly packed. Many people handling, trying on and placing items back on the rack, hanger, shelf, etc. Some items ending up on the ground being stepped on by the masses. A lot of 'excuse me's' being uttered in order to navigate through the small isles bumping into fellow race fans. When you were finally done with that part of the experience, it was then time to stand in another line to check out only to have to have any bags, purses, coolers, etc... to be checked by security on exit.

For me, there was something to be said for standing there outside a hauler looking up at the wall of merchandise. If you wanted to get your hands on something to check a size, quality, whatever.... they were more than happy to give you the opportunity. When you picked out what you wanted, they gave you a nice, neat, sealed shirt, unworn hat..... or whatever you chose to buy. You paid and were on your way to the next hauler or into the track. You didn't have to walk away profiled as a potential shoplifter.

Personally I never stood in long lines waiting any time more than I felt reasonable to purchase what I wanted. And, I was part of a few of the largest fan bases in the sport over the years. I walked up to those haulers already having in mind what I wanted. I didn't look at that hauler shopping experience in a negative way at all. That's not the same felling that I had standing there in Martinsville, waiting for security to go through my, my wifes & my friends items making sure we didn't take part of the Fanatics experience with us sans payment.

Too each his own but I think the right choice was eventually made.
 
DIDIT said:
You are being sarcastic right? They went to a business model (the tent) that didn't work. For reasons throughout this thread there were fans that disliked the tent and preferred the haulers. The decision was made to go back to a proven business model. Sure there are problems with the hauler model, but there is no perfect solution.
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The haulers worked when you had over 100k attend the race and 45k for the Busch race. In 2010 teams started to lose money. So teams started to share a hauler. My sis dated a driver in 2013 and he said he almost lost 100k on the trailer so he decided to team up with other teams to on a merchandise trailer. They made money. If people turn out and buy merchandise the tracks that signed with a merchandise company should make money. Main gate will only be going to isc tracks. Teams are optimistic about their haulers but it’s a wait and see approach. If something isn’t right the July Daytona race will see changes.
 
I wonder how much shopping is done online compared to at-track purchases now in days? Many third-party sites sell NASCAR merchandise.

I've mentioned it before, I'm happy the deal fell through because it gives an opprotunity for more competition to drive prices to be more reasonable down the line. Fanatics has a stronghold on the sports market providing merchandise for all the big sports. Its not going anywhere anytime soon either, so I think over the long haul this will be better to lets the teams decide who they want to provide merchandise and create the merchandise.

Big name drivers will get their own trailers, lesser known teammates will probably share. We'll see how this will go.
 
Kiante said:
I wonder how much shopping is done online compared to at-track purchases now in days?
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I haven't bought much since Junior changed numbers. But when I was buying a lot of the Bud #8 merchandise, I rarely bought much at the track. There was a local shop that sold all the same merchandise. When Nascar took over the merchandising for all the teams, that shop was ran out of business. So I turned to on-line shopping, mainly Racing USA. I stayed with Racing USA until Junior retired. I don't need any new merchandise now. Now I can wear all my Bud #8 merchandise. Everyone knows who it represents. It is now vintage. :)

So, mostly what I've bought from the track haulers has been track specific merchandise. I enjoy getting some kind of souvenir from the trip. And the track haulers are never really crowded.

I never got the chance to shop the tents but from all I've heard, it seems more like herding cows.. I would not like that I'm sure.
 
Pat said:
I never got the chance to shop the tents but from all I've heard, it seems more like herding cows.. I would not like that I'm sure.
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I agree that It's exactly like they're herding cattle but more confining. My pissoffometer pegged out and I had to get outta there.
 
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Johali said:
I agree that It's exactly like they're herding cattle but more confining. My pissoffometer pegged out and I had to get outta there.
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You sound like my brother. He would not be able to handle it.
 
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