Blackhawks merchandise sales soar with wins

Suburban retailers are having a tough time keeping Chicago Blackhawks merchandise in their stores this season.

With just a couple days until Christmas, shoppers are lucky if they can score a Hawks jersey. Dick's Sporting Goods says they can't keep up with demand for jerseys and shirts sporting the winning team's logo. Other area stores are only receiving small shipments of the coveted red and white jerseys. And the new black jersey that hit the ice a couple weeks ago is a nearly impossible find.

"I can't keep the Hawks stuff in the store," said Ray Laning, owner of Sports Fanatic stores in Palatine and West Dundee. "It's a killer," he added.

It's especially tough when Chicago's other professional sports teams have losing records, causing a lack of interest and sales for sports retailers.

"Every person that comes into the store is looking for Hawks. I put Bears jerseys on sale and I still can't get rid of them," Laning said.

A manager of Legends of the Field at Gurnee Mills says there's a surge in interest in the Hawks there as well. "The Bears, White Sox and Cubs had bad years. Everyone is turning their attention to the Hawks," Nick Lantz said.

A Patrick Sharp autograph signing a couple weeks ago drew about 1,000 fans to the Lake County sports store. "The line went into the parking lot," Lantz said.

A winning record and some talented young players are contributing to the hype.

"It's all Blackhawks stuff right now. A good majority of the Hawks stuff is gone," Lantz said.

Retailers are attempting to grab all the merchandise they can.

In a tough retail season, store owners wish they could order more, but it's just not available. Laning received a last minute shipment of youth-sized black jerseys Monday afternoon at his Sports Fanatic stores.

"I got Toews, Kane and blank jerseys," he said, adding that he expects they'll go fast, despite the $100 price tag.

He has red and white jerseys left without a player's name on the back. Those are $75.

For most retailers or distributors, the explosion of interest in the Hawks just wasn't in the game plan. It has been years since Chicago has seen this type of support for hockey.

"Anything Blackhawks right now are golden," said Larry Weindruch, director of communications at the National Sporting Goods Association in Mount Prospect.

The league is tight lipped about releasing numbers and dollar values on its sales. But if you look around, it's easy to see interest in the team is increasing.

"I see so many kids wearing the hockey jerseys," he said.

SportsLine Distributors in Buffalo Grove also is finding more people following the Hawks. The company sets up retail displays and sells sports memorabilia in stores across the country, including Jewel, Dominick's, 7-11 and Walgreens.

"Never in 20 years have we had requests for the Hawks," said co-owner Bill Gausselin. "Now all our customers want to sell Hawks stuff."

His company will be delivering Blackhawks pucks, key chains, playing cards and other memorabilia to nearly 800 stores over the next month. "The Hawks are the hottest team," Gausselin said.

He added that the sport is a new, valued part of his business as things generally slow in January when football winds down.

And experts don't expect the excitement to end anytime soon.

"This is a young team with such a bright future. This team could really be special for a long time," Weindruch said.