Noticed anything different about the NBA recently?
Well,
if you said, “the 90s are back!” Then you would be correct. Starting this
season, a number of teams have brought back retro jerseys from the 90s in order
to create buzz and most importantly, drive jersey sales. Despite being the
leading jersey seller amongst the four major sports for most of the previous
decade, NBA jersey sales have been suffering since the debacle that was the
2011 Lockout. According to Sports Illustrated and CBS Sports, jersey sales for
the 2011-12 season were down 38%, which was a decrease from $3 billion in
jersey sales in 2010-11 to just $1 billion in 2011-13. Unfortunately, this
issue is not just affecting the NBA as their official jersey merchandiser,
Adidas, is also losing on their bottom line as their sales totaled to only $350
million in 2011, which was a steep decrease from years past. NBA jerseys were
marked down on many online stores in hopes of just getting anyone to buy them.
(The Miami Heat in
their Alonzo Mourning-era retro jerseys)
So the
NBA saw an opportunity to capitalize on the retro 90s trend that 18-34
demographic seem to be enjoying presently by bringing back some of the most
iconic looks from the decade known for wacky logos (remember the Atlanta Hawks’
old Dikembe Mutombo look?) and great successes for the NBA.
Over
the course of this season, the Sacramento Kings, Miami Heat, Phoenix Suns,
Atlanta Hawks, Indiana Pacers, Chicago Bulls, and Milwaukee Bucks all will dawn
their retro looks for a few select contests. So if you’re in the mood for some
NBA action, don’t be surprised to see Joakim Noah and his Chicago Bulls in
their Michael Jordan dynasty era pinstripes or LeBron James in the simple but
sweet Alonzo Mourning-era Heat duds. The goal of the promotion is to bring back
the nostalgia of the 90s when most of the teams involved were at their best.
Now, Suns fans can remember the days of Charles Barkley winning the NBA MVP
award and Pacers fans can remember the clutch moments of Reggie Miller through
the new (old?) looks their teams are sporting.
(The Phoenix Suns
Retro Look – Past & Present)
Now
for the million-dollar question: will it help sales? Well, look no further than
the NFL and the retro jerseys that their teams use and sell as they are frequently
amongst the top-selling jerseys in the industry. The Washington Redskins
recently unveiled a 1937-era throwback that was received very warmly by fans to
the tune of sell-outs on NFL.com and the team’s shop website. The Philadelphia
Eagles and Minnesota Vikings have had similar success as well with their retro
lines so it was only natural for the NBA to go this route. I believe that it
will not be too long until we see more NBA squads bringing back 90s looks in
the future (I am still holding out hope that the New Orleans Hornets bring back
the old cartoon Charlotte Hornet jerseys). When the 2012-13 jersey sales come
out later this year, the NBA will be looking for a big increase from the low
point of a few seasons ago and that will determine the success/failure of this
promotion.
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Aaron J. Coleman is currently a sport management major at Drexel
University in Philadelphia, PA minoring in Communication (with a focus in
Public Relations). He was born and raised in Upper Marlboro, MD, a suburb
outside of Washington, DC. He is currently a supervisor for Drexel’s Intramural
Sports program and also an intern for the Arena Football Legaue’s Philadelphia
Soul franchise. He covers the Chicago Bulls, New York Yankees, and Washington
Redskins (his favorite squads along with the Washington Capitals and Drexel
Dragons) for sportsfansnews.com. Follow Aaron on Twitter @shutupCole.
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