Team Insight

TEAM FOOTBALL "ings will be pretty normal for the coming season. It took a whole year to get people to order early. Anytime you have organization and planning, you have better results," he says. Persistent Supply Chain Issues For nearly all team dealers, supply chain problems have eased but have not completely dissipated. "e shoulder pad situation should be better than the helmets," predicts Bruno. "e days of being able to order a helmet and get it in a couple of weeks are not going to happen for a while yet. As the season draws closer, we'll see what happens. Helmets are my biggest concern because there aren't a lot of options available." He cites last-minute demands as being the most problematic. "We're trying to stay on top of what we have for inventory and are forecasting what we'll need pre-season in August. Supply-wise, I'm cautiously optimistic. Manufacturers seem to have more available product, but the proof is in the pudding." Manning, at Jack Pearl's Sports Center, concurs. "e problem is getting helmets in on time for the season. It's a concern again because manufacturers are not taking any new helmet orders now – it's taking three to four months for helmet orders – and helmet parts aren't readily available," he says, adding that shoulder pads have caused a few hiccups, but that situation wasn't as bad since they had a lot in stock. Looking ahead, Manning believes the situation will improve: "We won't have people placing last-minute orders because they know they won't get them!" Capitol Varsity Sports' Fawley is hoping that supply chain issues will soon even out and get corrected. "Business is now more complex than before COVID," he points out. "Reconditioners are still waiting around for parts and processing an order is complicated. We might need to go to three different warehouses to fill orders. It's very time-consuming." Reconditioning Remains Challenging Apparently, there's plenty of reconditioning business to be had — if only parts and labor were more readily available. "We're getting a lot of business thrown at us, but there's not enough labor or parts," laments Fawley of Capitol Varsity Sports. "One of the larger reconditioners, Schutt, went from about 200,000 helmets to around 80,000 last year and might do fewer than 80,000 this year. Schools are struggling to get their helmets back. All the plants are filled and they can't take any more — there's no capacity. Parts are still an issue and that's driven prices through the roof." Fawley says that although things have im- proved slightly since the pandemic, more states are expanding to have spring football in some fashion and there's no capacity for reconditioning. "We're still chasing parts from manufactur- ers and helmets aren't shipping until this July from some suppliers. When football ends in October and people want their helmets back in March or April, it's impossible," he says. "It's made for a volatile situation." By the end of December, Capitol Varsity had about 40,000 helmets in its plant and had to turn down business. Grogan-Marciano's Bruno takes an even dimmer view. "e reconditioning business is horrible," he says. "We reluctantly do a little bit of reconditioning as a service to our customers, but it's never anything that we pushed a lot. It's tough to get parts for helmets and there are not enough people to process everything. At least we're now getting realistic ship dates because reconditioners are being more up front about what they can and can't handle." Reconditioning is a big part of Garretson Sport Center's football business, but it's become very costly, upwards of $40 per helmet. Freight is also a big factor and the rates have skyrocketed. "e freight alone could total $300 to $400 and then add to that $40-plus per helmet, and with football teams already being big, the ex- pense for a high school is considerable," says Garretson. "It's a strong business, but a lot of work. Where we can deliver locally to save on freight costs, we will." At Jack Pearl's Sports Center, Manning has noticed some improvement from last year. "We now expect equipment back in May, rather than June and July. During the pandemic, parts and staff shortages were the big problems." Like Garretson's, Manning makes an effort to pick up helmets from his customers and then deliver them to the schools to save on freight costs. "One of our reconditioners is about four hours away, so we get a U-Haul and take everything at once. It saves on freight and we can distribute that cost across a number of schools," he explains. Making Adjustments Many dealers are now considering how they can better serve the football market post-pandemic. For Garretson, the secret is to build and maintain strong customer relationships. "Football is one of the biggest income gener- ators for us, so we take care of our relationships. Pricing is important, but service is key," he says. Next year, Capitol Varsity Sports will cele- brate its 70th anniversary. "We're doing more related to technology, such as online orders, but the personal touch and relationships are still very important," says Fawley. "It all comes down to relationships and service." And at Grogan-Marciano, encouraging customers to order early, a few months aer the previous season ends. "e more we can get done in December, January and February the better and the less we'll have to deal with in August," says Bruno. He pretty much speaks for everyone when he says, "My hope is that the turmoil of last year will continue to change people's buying habits. I hope the chaos of last year won't repeat itself this year." n 20 • Team Insight ~ May/June 2023 teaminsightmag.com

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