Attendance

[pgb-ohio]

Re: Attendance

The ECAC tourney in AC was a complete failure. The arena was a dump and there was next to no local support for it. I was there twice and both times the staff didn't even know there were hockey games being played there. Absolutely no hockey feel at all...

This is a very important factor to keep in mind. Some level of local support and interest is going to be essential for a successful regional. If the event is counting on travelers to be 100% of the crowd, it is very likely to fall short of expectations, just as you describe.

Perhaps tournaments held within New England are an exception, due to the shorter driving distances. Perhaps. But in the rest of the country, regionals need to be held where college hockey is at least on the radar screen.

 

[capswon]

Re: Attendance

We went to Allentown this year and it was the first time I stepped foot into the PPL center. Very nice building and the atmosphere surrounding it was fine as well. My only complaint is that the amenities didn't accommodate the capacity of the crowd. Bathroom lines were long, not many urinals or stalls in either room that frequented, the food lines were long but at least they didn't run out of food like one venue I was at. But my biggest plus was the Tim Horton's. The line was as long as the drive thru lines when you go to one in Canada, but they moved you along fairly quickly. Also, the NCAA merch table only had like three choices of shirts available toward the middle of the second game on night one. Is this poor planning or do they only put out so much each night? Seems that they didn't think the draw would be as heavy?? As a Hershey Bears fan, I would throw my hat in the ring for the Giant Center. Good building for hockey, easily accessible from major roadways, 15 drive from Harrisburg airport, plenty of hotels and you would have local support as well due to the hockey community. I know that Penn State played two games there 2-3 years ago, and I believe they drew well.

 

[pgb-ohio]

Re: Attendance

...As a Hershey Bears fan, I would throw my hat in the ring for the Giant Center. Good building for hockey, easily accessible from major roadways, 15 drive from Harrisburg airport, plenty of hotels and you would have local support as well due to the hockey community. I know that Penn State played two games there 2-3 years ago, and I believe they drew well.

A good idea that's worth pursuing, IMHO.

Even though I didn't quote it, I also appreciate your eyewitness account from Allentown.

 

[bcmsu9196]

Re: Attendance

Also, the NCAA merch table only had like three choices of shirts available toward the middle of the second game on night one. Is this poor planning or do they only put out so much each night? Seems that they didn't think the draw would be as heavy??

It looked like the Penn State fans bought up everything with a Penn State logo on it. I think they also bought up everything WITHOUT a Penn State logo on it. On Sunday, all the apparel was gone and the souvenir stand just had a guy selling programs.

 

[dxmnkd316]

Re: Attendance

It’s a cult.

 

[The Rube]

Re: Attendance

It’s a cult.

I believe it's called NAMBLA.

 

[beaverhockeyfan]

It looked like the Penn State fans bought up everything with a Penn State logo on it. I think they also bought up everything WITHOUT a Penn State logo on it. On Sunday, all the apparel was gone and the souvenir stand just had a guy selling programs.

That happened the first two years Bemidji was in the tourney back in 05 and 06. BSU gear was sold out almost by the end of the first period of their first game. It wasn't just Beaver fans buying up the gear, it was casual fans as well.

 

[MissThundercat]

Re: Attendance

That happened the first two years Bemidji was in the tourney back in 05 and 06. BSU gear was sold out almost by the end of the first period of their first game. It wasn't just Beaver fans buying up the gear, it was casual fans as well.

2009, when you went to the Frozen Four from Grand Rapids, I went to buy a shirt and everything was gone.

 

[pgb-ohio]

Re: Attendance

My experience with NCAA Merchandise comes mostly from Frozen Fours. Haven't been to a regional in years. But I bet the factors are similar, if not identical.

1. In tournament after tournament, perceived scarcity creates demand. It's become virtually a tradition to purchase tournament merchandise prior to the start of the first game. The NCAA has to know this, and at least tolerates it.

2. The pre-game rush tends to deke the newbies. They see the lines, decide that waiting is crazy, and come back at one of the intermissions. The good news is that the line is gone. The bad news is that the things they wanted are also gone.

3. No effort is made to stock extra quantities of the most desirable items. The "good stuff" sells out fast. To my eye, it's not all that hard to look at the offerings and identify what the popular items will be. But the NCAA is either unwilling or unable to exercise such judgment.

4. It's clear that the NCAA doesn't want to be caught with extra tournament gear. They'd rather leave money on the table than be caught with extra inventory.

5. To the extent there's any overstock at all, I've never seen it on the market, after the fact. They sell at full retail price during the tournament, then they're done with it. No clearance sales.

My observations & opinions, FWIW.

 

[MTUHuskies]

Re: Attendance

My experience with NCAA Merchandise comes mostly from Frozen Fours. Haven't been to a regional in years. But I bet the factors are similar, if not identical.

1. In tournament after tournament, perceived scarcity creates demand. It's become virtually a tradition to purchase tournament merchandise prior to the start of the first game. The NCAA has to know this, and at least tolerates it.

2. The pre-game rush tends to deke the newbies. They see the lines, decide that waiting is crazy, and come back at one of the intermissions. The good news is that the line is gone. The bad news is that the things they wanted are also gone.

3. No effort is made to stock extra quantities of the most desirable items. The "good stuff" sells out fast. To my eye, it's not all that hard to look at the offerings and identify what the popular items will be. But the NCAA is either unwilling or unable to exercise such judgment.

4. It's clear that the NCAA doesn't want to be caught with extra tournament gear. They'd rather leave money on the table than be caught with extra inventory.

5. To the extent there's any overstock at all, I've never seen it on the market, after the fact. They sell at full retail price during the tournament, then they're done with it. No clearance sales.

My observations & opinions, FWIW.

Does anyone here attend NCAA tournaments for other sports? I'm curious about merchandise availability there.

One option would be to sell the overstock to the schools to sell on their campus. I would think people who couldn't make the trip would buy them up. Especially for the winning team or 1st time/rare participants.

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk

 

[LTsatch]

Re: Attendance

Does anyone here attend NCAA tournaments for other sports? I'm curious about merchandise availability there.

One option would be to sell the overstock to the schools to sell on their campus. I would think people who couldn't make the trip would buy them up. Especially for the winning team or 1st time/rare participants.

Sent from my SM-G920V using Tapatalk

From what I saw in Bridgeport this year, the T-Shirt and memorabilia franchise was run by a local New Haven business with close ties to the host Yale. This company is not really set up for excessive sales of extra products on a just in case basis. Also remember these products have to be printed and created from the day of the Sunday selection show, giving the franchisee only 6 days to produce product.

 

[pgb-ohio]

Re: Attendance

From what I saw in Bridgeport this year, the T-Shirt and memorabilia franchise was run by a local New Haven business with close ties to the host Yale. This company is not really set up for excessive sales of extra products on a just in case basis. Also remember these products have to be printed and created from the day of the Sunday selection show, giving the franchisee only 6 days to produce product.

The short production period is certainly a factor. The production capacity of the individual vendor also matters. Very legitimate points.

And yet, when you see the same thing happening in tournament after tournament, I've got to believe there's a larger policy at work. On some level the NCAA must be trying to take away any hope of discount merchandise; to nip such hopes in the bud.

Consider an analogy from another industry:
When I was a kid, we lived pretty close to a great Italian restaurant. Everything on the menu was excellent, but the pies were especially good. Banana Cream & Lemon Meringue were the options. Made fresh daily. The main intent was to sell pie by the slice to dining room customers. But it was also possible to buy whole pies. You wouldn't call the price for the whole pie outrageous, but they weren't cheap either.

Next part of the story: Sometimes there were extra pies at the end of the day. The proprietors found it heartbreaking to throw out the extras. So a half hour before closing, they started selling the pies at half price. Word spread quickly. Soon, there was a daily line was stretching out the door 30 minutes before closing. At first, the owners tried making a few additional pies so they wouldn't have to send folks away unhappy. But that move obviously wasn't designed to dampen the demand for the half price pies, and of course it didn't. Worse, sales of the full price pies were noticeably slumping.

You know the rest. The restaurant had to end the half-price pie sales.


It's not a perfect analogy. For one thing, t-shirts and pucks don't "spoil" after a few days. Nevertheless, I think the core lesson is the same. If overstock found its way to the campuses of the participating schools, a good number of customers would reach a familiar compromise: OK, I'll buy the luxury item. But only at a deep discount. By restricting supply, the NCAA can effectively take the thrifty option off the table. To be fair, I don't have any sort of proof that this is occurring. But my belief is that this is also part of the story.

 

[chickod]

Re: Attendance

To be fair, I don't have any sort of proof that this is occurring. But my belief is that this is also part of the story.

Of course you're correct. If you took Economics 101 you know that. It's called "supply and demand." "Guns and butter." If people know there will always be a supply, the demand (and, therefore, unless the vendor wants to be stuck with inventory - a business killer), and, subsequently, the price will go down. If you "restrict" the supply, the demand will be high, allowing the vendor to increase the price.

And regarding the "time" it takes to produce the supply, six days is MORE than enough. I know just from watching the nightly news in Boston (of course, we have plenty of practice here ), if a team wins a championship there is always a story about the local t-shirt vendor working all night to churn out huge supplies of product. And they are in the stores the next day. So I don't think that's as much of a factor as the supply/demand one...

 

[Nick Papagiorgio]

Re: Attendance

It looked like the Penn State fans bought up everything with a Penn State logo on it. I think they also bought up everything WITHOUT a Penn State logo on it. On Sunday, all the apparel was gone and the souvenir stand just had a guy selling programs.

Did the Pedo Bear make an appearance in the arena?

 

[LTsatch]

Of course you're correct. If you took Economics 101 you know that. It's called "supply and demand." "Guns and butter." If people know there will always be a supply, the demand (and, therefore, unless the vendor wants to be stuck with inventory - a business killer), and, subsequently, the price will go down. If you "restrict" the supply, the demand will be high, allowing the vendor to increase the price.

And regarding the "time" it takes to produce the supply, six days is MORE than enough. I know just from watching the nightly news in Boston (of course, we have plenty of practice here ), if a team wins a championship there is always a story about the local t-shirt vendor working all night to churn out huge supplies of product. And they are in the stores the next day. So I don't think that's as much of a factor as the supply/demand one...

Those championship shirts are usually pre printed with only the team name and logo left out. The regional and frozen four stuff is much more custom work. As an aside, there did not seem to be any problem on the supply side in Bridgeport.

 

[Nick Papagiorgio]

Re: Attendance

Those championship shirts are usually pre printed with only the team name and logo left out.

I disagree. Not that this should make a difference anyway, Satch.

 

[pgb-ohio]

Re: Attendance

Of course you're correct. If you took Economics 101 you know that. It's called "supply and demand." "Guns and butter." If people know there will always be a supply, the demand (and, therefore, unless the vendor wants to be stuck with inventory - a business killer), and, subsequently, the price will go down. If you "restrict" the supply, the demand will be high, allowing the vendor to increase the price.

Put another way: In the case of merchandise, the NCAA isn't trying to maximize revenue, they're trying to maximize profit.