In Student Stores on Friday North Carolina fans — local and long-distance alike — were gathering up national championship merchandise just as they have every day since UNC defeated Michigan State in Detroit for the school's fifth NCAA title on Monday.
Susan Keith of Maryland — a 1982 graduate of UNC — sported more than a dozen shirts draped over her left arm as well as a list with style and size requests.
UNC fans across three generations from age five to 77" had entrusted Keith with obtaining their championship gear.
""I'm visiting family for Easter (in Davidson County)" Keith said. And it's just an hour and a half over" so we decided to spend the day here.""
Despite the recession" Tar Heel fans are handing over $20 per T-shirt sometimes totaling several hundred dollars or more" at shops in Chapel Hill and across the country alike.
""It's been wonderful. Everybody has come into town" and everybody is excited and the customers are so thrilled with everything that's going on" said Heather Frazier, retail division manager of Johnny T-Shirt on Franklin Street.
From what I understand" we are right on pace with 2005 (championship sales)" which is good because that means that the economy … and the fact that we won in 2005 hasn't really affected the fans' mindset.""
John Berry" a graduate of 2005 who is now in his third year of medical school at UNC knows all too well that the mindset hasn't changed — at least not from the perspective of his friends and relatives.
Not long after UNC's 34th and final win of the season" he went from fan to meticulous order-taker.
""I was here in 2005" so it was kind of the same thing Berry said.
A lot of people like the ‘I was on Franklin Street' (design)" but I refuse to get that for anyone who wasn't on Franklin Street. That just seems like cheating.""
But Berry's moratorium on liars' gear didn't shrink his order" and Student Stores definitely can thank those out-of-towners for yet another large sale — one that led to new shipments that sold out almost every day last week.
But it's not just the stores that are profiting from the boom in sales.
UNC sees a portion of revenue generated for each official school product that is sold.
Because of that and the increase of UNC-licensed merchandise the University stands to make significant gains as well. Most of those gains go straight into funding financial aid.
In addition to the increased revenue from sales there is the potential for increased generosity from donors. After the 2005 championship UNC saw a $10 million increase in gifts.
And though that figure cannot be directly correlated with the title — an even bigger rise in donations occurred the year before the '05 championship — it can't hurt.
Neither the numbers for contributions nor merchandising sales will be in for a while but it's safe to say Roy Williams' second national championship in five years will put a little more green in his alma mater's light blue pockets.
Contact the Sports Editor at sports@unc.edu.
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Sunday, April 28, 2024
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