The number crunching has been done and the Ospreys commercial team are celebrating a hugely successful first week for the new home jersey, and this season’s wider Canterbury range.
Having teamed up with Canterbury earlier this year, all eyes were on the Liberty Stadium last Sunday when the 2017/18 home jersey, Canterbury’s first, was officially launched.
The day kicked off at 9am with the online reveal of the new 17/18 shirt, before the doors of the Liberty Stadium Club Shop were thrown open early, at 10.30am, to welcome supporters keen to get their hands on the jersey and meet some of the Ospreys’ biggest names who were instore for the launch.
The sports village specially created for the day attracted hundreds of visitors, and almost 400 children were presented with their 17/18 Ospreys home jersey by the players as part of their Kids Plus season membership package.
Such was the success of the launch that the merchandise team at the region reported a huge jump in year on year kit launch sales.
With hundreds of shirts sold on the day, there was an increase of 27 per cent year on year on first day replica shirt sales – and 51 per cent up on 2015/16.
Incredibly, overall sales of the new merchandise range, including leisurewear, home and alternate shirt, have soared by 68 per cent on last summer.
“It really was a hugely successful day for us commercially which couldn’t have gone better” said Huw Warren, Head of Commercial at the Ospreys.
“It’s given us a platform to build on that shows the potential that we have to grow to another level this season.
“Having two innovative and proactive commercial partners in Canterbury and Lovell Rugby come on board ensured that anticipation was high ahead of the launch and we saw that in the response to the new shirt, with phenomenal demand on the day and in the days since.”
Simon Rowe, Head of Sports Marketing at Canterbury, added:
“Our partnership with the Ospreys got off to a fantastic start at the weekend. There was a great buzz in the club shop, in and around the fanzone and inside Liberty Stadium, with many supporters proudly sporting their new Canterbury kit.
“We also received positive feedback from the players who’d had their first run out in the home jersey for the Canterbury Cup. Moreover, we were delighted to be able to offer tickets to 10 clubs in the region selected by Ospreys in the Community, who attended the game as part of Canterbury’s commitment to engage with the wider Ospreys community. A great day had by all!”
