Skip to main content

Rooting for a category expansion in sporting goods

8/30/2011

Target may want to rethink its space allocation for the sporting goods department in light of the success the company is having with its Fan Central initiative. Granted, Fan Central is a licensed apparel program within the sporting goods department, but EVP merchandising Kathee Tesija described the success the program is having as “remarkable” during a recap of key merchandising initiatives earlier this month in a meeting with financial analysts.


According to Tesija, Fan Central’s high-quality, team-related apparel offered at great prices is now in every store and each store features a customized product assortment across every major league and team.


“It has quickly become the most productive space in the sporting goods floor pad,” Tesija said.


That’s saying something because licensed sports apparel is inherently difficult to manage as fan loyalty can surge and wane with a team’s fortunes, while affinities for teams and players also can vary widely within the same markets. That introduces a degree of operational complexity to assortment decisions and promotional efforts in a category segment that faces the same sizing issues as other apparel categories.


The fact that Target is managing this complexity and achieving remarkable results with Fan Central suggests the company might have an even larger opportunity with sporting goods. It is evident shoppers are willing to visit and make purchases in the sporting goods department, but Target’s limited breadth of assortment means active lifestyle shoppers inclined to makes sporting goods purchases are forced to go elsewhere to satisfy their needs.

X
This ad will auto-close in 10 seconds