Send us a text In Episode 8 of Season 2 (Part 2), we continue the conversation with Eric Perugini, Chief Commercial Officer at NBALAB - the research and development incubator facilitating product expansion into the NBA's Global Licensing Group. Eric continues with the journey of NBALAB since it's inception in 2016 and provides insight into the services they provide to creators looking to enter the NBA licensing programme. During this this episode we cover; The selection process at NBAL...

Send us a text In Episode 8 of Season 2 (Part 1), we chat to Eric Perugini, Chief Commercial Officer at NBALAB - the research and development incubator facilitating product expansion into the NBA's Global Licensing Group. Eric take us on the journey of NBALAB since it's inception in 2016 and provides insight into the services they provide to creators looking to enter the NBA licensing programme. During this this episode we cover; NBALAB's origin story and the inspiration for the creati...

Send us a textIn Episode 7 of Season 2, we chat to David Dunn, Managing Director at 442 Design - the leading sports retail stadium store design partner in the UK & Europe.David has built an impressive portfolio of stadium venue partners across the years and has become renowned as the go-to partner within UK sport for stadium store design & fit out projects.During this this episode we cover;what it takes from start to finish on a stadium store design projectthe work that happens before...

Send us a textIn Episode 6 of Season 2, we chat to Josh Briggs, now of Stadium Essentials but formerly Director of Retail at TD Gardens - one of the US's busiest sports venues.Josh has woven a career in professional sports retail, finding his way back home to New England to head up the Retail Operation at the home of the Boston Celtics & Boston Bruins, TD Gardens.In the second part of this episode we cover;creating elevated retail experiences for the most exclusive courtside guestsoperati...

Send us a textIn Episode 6 of Season 2, we chat to Josh Briggs, now of Stadium Essentials but formerly Director of Retail at TD Gardens - one of the US's busiest sports venues.Josh has woven a career in professional sports retail, finding his way back home to New England to head up the Retail Operation at the home of the Boston Celtics & Boston Bruins, TD Gardens.In the first part of this episode we cover;the journey from touring the world with music artists to his dream hometown jobrunni...

Send us a textIn Episode 5 of Season 2, we chat to Alexander Protsenko - CEO & Founder of KitLegit.KitLegit is a brand new tech solution providing digital authentication for sports apparel, aimed at detecting any potential indicators of counterfeiting and helping the world of sports merchandising to uphold confidence and trust in authenticated products.Within this episode we discuss the topical issue of football (soccer) jersey counterfeiting and the darker side of this story, the reason'...

Send us a textIn Episode 4 of Season 2, we chat to Gauthier Vervaeke & Thomas Rypens of Club Brugge.Club Brugge play their football within the Belgian Pro League and regularly within European competitions. With a rich domestic history, they are one of the most successful teams within Belgium. Within this episode we discuss the club's intelligent use of fan data, testing and benchmarking as they grow their retail operation. With a pioneering approach to commercial strategies and a wi...

Send us a textIn Episode 3 of Season 2, we chat to Pete Lucchesi & Cory Fahey - Creative Director & Co-Owners of Streaker Sports.Streaker Sports are a young start-up with some serious USP's, operating in a very crowded space within US-sports apparel supply and manufacture. Dedicated to telling the unique stories of sports culture, with their own unique vintage style, they're starting to find some great traction in a number of US markets. We hear how the first years have been for Strea...

Send us a textIn Episode 2 of Season 2, we chat to Nicole Bekkers - Founder and CEO of FC88.FC88 are challenging the status quo with clubs, federations and global sports brands on the subject of sustainability. Having identified a huge issue with dead-stock during her role with KNVB (Dutch Football Federation) and being unsatisfied with the response she got, Nicole knew she had to do something about this. Founded in 2020, FC88 are pushing the needle firmly towards a sustainable solution for t...

Send us a textSeason 2 of That Sports Merch Podcast has arrived!In the first episode of S2, we talk to Robbie Sarton, Head of Product at Nick Auditore Represents. Robbie, based in Australia head up the product division of NAR, which holds the rights for the Mitchell & Ness brand (and others) for the ANZ market.We discuss the brand's rights management, product ideation and go to market strategies. You'll hear how NAR have scaled quickly and how they work with well-placed distribution chann...

Send us a textTSMP continues the feature interview with Cristina McAloon, Sr. Manager of Buying at Las Vegas Raiders.Part 2 of the interview focuses on the protection of the Raiders brand, team values and more in depth detail around managing the buying team at this NFL giant. Cristina speaks with passion about the industry, being a true cheerleader for merchants across the globe.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoicesSupport the showJoin our LinkedIn community by follow...

Send us a textTSMP chats to Cristina McAloon, Sr. Manager of Buying at the Las Vegas Raiders.In Part 1 of this feature interview, you will hear about Cristina's background in the fashion industry and the transition into working for some iconic names within licensed sports merchandise. Cristina talks to the podcast about the size of the Raiders retail business, Raider Image and the fluctuation in size between in-season and off-season. You'll also hear how her team remain competitive against th...

Send us a textTSMP talks to ex-professional footballer Jake Howells. Jake takes us on a whistle-stop tour of his career in football before sharing his experience and insight into the journey from professional sportsman to the world of sports business. A fascinating listen which covers the reality shock of the world of business outside of the sports 'bubble' and the quick learning curve and mindset reset needed to be able to carve out a new career after a successful, but short, sports career. ...

Send us a textTSMP chats to The Terrace director and co-founder, Carl Sewell. Carl takes us on The Terrace's journey from Facebook page to post funny football content, to 'cult' merchandise brand and to today's position as the go-to supplier of On-Demand merchandise supply within UK sports merchandise. Hear of the unique approach to the formation of the business, the reaction to a 92-page 'cease & desist' letter from the Football Association, and the fan-first culture which weaves it's wa...

Send us a textTSMP chats to Sam Swanton, Head of Retail at Wigan Athletic FC. We hear how Sam has been battling against some of the toughest conditions - a global pandemic AND the club falling into administration at the same time!Sam's retail business was changed overnight - with the team finding out at the same time as the general public, on Sky TV. The challenge for Sam and his team was to then become self-sufficient. Innovative leadership battling through some dark times saw Sam navigate t...

Send us a textIn this 2-part episode of That Sports Merch Podcast we speak to Joan Carrera López, Head of Retail & Licensing at Italian football giants, AC Milan. During this first part of the episode, Joan introduces his varied career to date and explains how he managed to find himself living in Milan, working for one of the biggest global names in sport. We cover life at AC Milan and talk about in-depth licensing and brand positioning strategy as well as covering some of the m...

Send us a textPart 2 of our interview with Joan Carrera López of AC Milan. Joan chats to That Sports Merch Podcast about the wider strategy around AC's brand licensing. We hear how new licensing opportunities are established and how full Joan's email inbox is! We round off the episode discussing how pop-up stores and clever brand positioning has driven growth and awareness for the AC Milan brand, and how Joan ans his team have tapped into knowledge from other European Clubs and other spo...

Send us a textTSMP chat to Whitney Bansin, CEO of Vegas-based fashion apparel disrupter The Wild Collective. We hear Whitney's story of building her brand within professional sports supply and what inspired The Wild Collective to bring their streetwear, fashion-forward, premium feel to the sports market. With celebrities such as TI and Diplo choosing to wear her pieces, Whit's certainly cracked her niche.You won't want to miss this inspiring, positive chat. This episode goes down avenue...

Send us a textTSMP talk to Nick Lodge from Onside Brand. Nick's an expert in branded space activation projects and has an extensive retail brand history - most notably where sports merchandise is concerned, with adidas. Hear how club stores and branded spaces have evolved over the last 10 years, alongside some on Nick's favourite projects, including how Manchester United's Old Trafford megastore was flipped from Nike to adidas in just 1 week! We find out what went well, and more interestingly...

Send us a textTSMP talks to Domenic Notarfrancesco, VP Consumer Products for United Soccer League. We dive deep into how the USL support their new franchise clubs as well as those already established professional and pre-professional clubs.This episode provides fascinating insight into the local community outreach program, research and development of a local fanbase and understanding what fits with the community demographic in order to become a successful new franchise. We hear about the stru...