51s Retail Sales Manager Faces Task Of Unloading Aliens Merchandise To Make Way For New Branded Items Next Season

 

By ALAN SNEL

LVSportsBiz.com

 

Jason Weber has extra motivation to sell the licensed merchandise bearing the Las Vegas 51s logo this season.

 

Weber, the 51s retail operations manager, has the job of not only trying to liquidate the 51s logo gear — and New York Mets caps and souvenirs too — but also the task of preparing to order and sell new branded products next season for the Triple A Pacific Coast League team owned by land developer Howard Hughes Corp.

 

Howard Hughes is giving the Triple A club a brand makeover, which means Weber will have to start ordering new licensed gear with the new trademarked logo as soon as possible after the team owner decides the new team name and logo. Howard Hughes is building a $150 million stadium in Summerlin set to open in March 2019 next to the Vegas Golden Knights training center in Downtown Summerlin. Howard Hughes, Summerlin’s master developer, is also receiving $80 million from the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) in the form of a ballpark naming rights deal.

 

Weber said the new branded makeover should be done by August or September — and he will then start ordering the New Era-produced ballcaps and licensed apparel from other companies soon afterwards.

 

There’s no discount or sale on the current crop of 51s licensed gear and New York Mets hats. The Mets are moving their Triple A club from Las Vegas to Syracuse for the 2019 season because the Mets bought the Triple A Syracuse Chiefs franchise.

 

“People are still buying (51s items) so we’re not discounting,” Weber told LVSportsBiz.com during Monday night’s 51s-El Paso Chihuahuas game. “I thought sales would drop but we’ve held our own. People understand it’s time to do it.”

 

The new parent Major League Baseball club that has its Triple A team in Las Vegas won’t have a say on how the team is branded, Weber said. And Howard Hughes Corp. is not allowed to meddle in trying to work a deal for an affiliation arrangement until September, several sources said.

 

Weber said not only is the team accepting suggestions for a new name, Howard Hughes Corp. has its own internal designers on the case and the team has also hired a company called Brandiose that specializes in minor league re-branding jobs.

 

It will be interesting to see what Howard Hughes Corp. comes up with for its minor league team re-brand. As the Summerlin land developer, Howard Hughes has an upscale, professional reputation and has just built a new development called, “Reverence.” But minor league baseball is known for irreverent, off-beat in-game entertainment and promotions and the Pacific Coast League includes non-traditional team names such as the Isotopes of Albuquerque and Chihuahuas of El Paso.

 

It’s conceivable that the thought of using the new team name as a marketing strategy to promote Summerlin “has crossed their minds,” Weber said.

 

Not only does Weber have to unload 51s merchandise, he has plenty of New York Mets hats and souvenirs to sell, too. Weber expects to discount the Mets gear later this season.

 

Weber noted some teams that have lame duck team names and licensed gear during a final season have yard sale-like events to liquidate the stock. But he said that’s not necessarily going to happen with the leftover 51s gear at the end of the season.

 

“We’ll try our best to sell out the 51s stuff,” Weber said.

 

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Weber noted that before he became retail sales manager, the 51s would blow out the season’s gear and then completely re-stock the shelves. But he said that’s not the strategy he follows.

 

The good news for next season is that Weber will have nearly double the space to sell licensed gear in the team store as the shop’s size increases from 800 square feet to about 1,500 square feet in the new Summerlin venue, he said.

 

Weber anticipates that some 51s hats and items will make the journey to the new ballpark in the western suburbs and take their place next to old Las Vegas Stars Triple A caps and some other retro Las Vegas ball team items.

 

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