Aviators Merchandise Sales Clear $1 Million Barrier This Season
By Alan Snel
LVSportsBiz.com
The re-branded Las Vegas Aviators’ logo was not exactly a hit after its unveiling back in December, but apparently that didn’t hurt merchandise sales at the Triple A baseball team’s new venue because sales of Aviators merchandise recently cracked the $1 million barrier this baseball season in Summerlin.
The Aviators team store is often a busy place during home games at the $150 million baseball palace where sellouts are the norm and the Pacific Coast League team leads all Triple A ball clubs in attendance.
Fans complained the Aviators’ logo revealed in December looked like the Ant-Man or Johnny Carson’s Carnac the Magnificent, but the power of the re-branding of the old 51s could not stop the retail spending of people who have snapped up Aviators caps, jerseys and T-shirts. The ballcaps with the “LV” logo were hot sellers and even white home and gray away Aviators jerseys sold well.
Breaking the $1 million barrier in merch sales is impressive for a minor league team. And in the Aviators ‘case, it’s a byproduct of the team focusing solely on selling Aviators gear in their team store in Year 1 in Downtown Summerlin. Unlike at Cashman Field where the team store sold other minor league team items, the Aviators ballpark team store features only merchandise of the Aviators; their Hispanic-themed counterparts, the Reyes de Plata; and the Oakland Athletics, the MLB parent team of the Howard Hughes Corporation-owned Aviators.
Tuesday was Reyes de Plata night at the Aviators ballyard, which has had a stunning 31 sellout crowds this season and has easily broken the Las Vegas Triple A baseball attendance record with two months to spare. The Aviators began the season with 15 consecutive sellouts before the streak was broken in early May.
The Aviators defeated their in-state rivals, the Reno Aces, 8-7, tonight and sport a 48-37 record. The Tuesday evening crowd of 7,276 witnessed the win and a sellout crowd is set to watch the last game of the homestand and the fireworks extravaganza Wednesday to celebrate Independence Day.
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