Rob Fisher
Now that school is back in for the fall semester, the local bookstores are crowded once again with students buying textbooks and school supplies.
But that’s not all — they’re also buying N.C. State merchandise. Anything from shorts to caps to T-shirts, as long as it says “N.C. State” or “Wolfpack” on it, is selling.
And according to Jessica Keel, the store manager at Packbackers on Hillsborough Street, it is normal to see an increase in merchandise sales this time of year.
“This time of year definitely has an impact on our merchandise sales,” Keel said. “The students are back and are buying back-to-school clothes that show school spirit.”
Brent Myers, a junior in criminology, echoed Keel’s assessment after purchasing a couple of new T-shirts for the upcoming year.
“Since I go to N.C. State, I should have N.C. State clothes to wear,” Myers said. “You should want people to know what school you go to.”
Keel added, though, the real spike in sales will come right before the first football game.
“It won’t probably have a huge effect until closer to the weekend, like Friday or even Saturday,” Keel said.
Richard Hayes, the director of N.C. State Bookstores and an alumnus, said the biggest jump in merchandise sales for his store would also be on a Friday before a game and the day of a game.
“Game day and the day before are our biggest days,” Hayes said. “Our merchandise sales probably increase by 200 percent from a normal day to a game day Saturday.”
The campus bookstore puts so much stock in its success on game day it changes its hours to accommodate the game. For example, Saturday the football team opens its season at Carter-Finley Stadium against Appalachian State at 6:00 p.m., and because of the late start, the bookstore will open at 8:00 a.m. and close at 5:00 p.m.
“We’ll do that for different games to try and be open for people who shop on the day of the game,” Hayes said.
Myers, who plans to attend Saturday’s game, said wearing State apparel to the game is an important part of being a fan.
“I’ve been to most of the games over the past few years,” Myers said. “And people should support the school at the games by wearing State clothes.”
Those fans are not only students, though, and neither are all of the people shopping for Pack merchandise as the season draws near.
“We’ll get all types of diehard Wolfpack fans in here,” he said. “They want the new stuff every year.”
Susan Vance, an East Carolina graduate who works in the University cashiers’ office, said for her, shopping for State clothes before the season is an every year occurrence.
“I like to upgrade the stuff that I already have,” Vance said. “And buy some new stuff. Usually I buy T-shirts and maybe a car flag. This year I bought raincoats, in case we get rain on Saturday.”
Vance, a season ticket holder who married a State fan in December and began her honeymoon at the Meineke Car Care bowl in Charlotte, added no matter what the expectations are, people want new logo merchandise for football season.
“With all the anticipation of a new football season, people get excited,” she said. “Regardless of the expectations for the season, people will buy new stuff, especially freshman and parents of new students.”
The local bookstores, like the campus bookstore and Packbackers, provide a place to buy Wolfpack merchandise, but they are not the only stores which benefit from the start of a new school year and football season.
Kmart, on Western Boulevard, also carries N.C. State apparel and sales manager Steve Hill said the end of August and the beginning of September are big for his store, too.
“At the beginning [of football season] we certainly see a rise in State apparel sales,” Hill said. “It’s especially big for the first couple of games.”
Hill said he expects such a jump in sales this week that Monday he received 40 new boxes of State clothes.
Kmart, which monitors the sales of Wolfpack clothing during the season, even tries to capitalize on the increased shopping activity during a football season by having promotions and requiring certain dress by employees.
“We recently had a midnight madness sale where all the employees wore State shirts,” Hill said. “And on every game day we will require all our employees to wear State shirts. We do that to let everyone know that we are with N.C. State.”