Spirit Wear & The 6 Pillars of League Fundraising

September 1, 2016

Jay Whitehead

This is a guest post from Jay Whitehead of LeagueNetwork Magazine.

 

Here are two facts that are always front and center in conversations with youth team or league managers. First, 80% of youth league managers tell us at LeagueNetwork Magazine that their league faces a $1,000 to $50,000 budget shortfall every year, which requires them to fundraise.  Second, 87% of youth league managers we've surveyed say there is one task they dislike the more than any other: fundraising.

 

And any study of youth league fundraising will show you that leagues today are using 6 different tools to raise funds, in the following order:

  • Crowdfunding
  • Uniform sponsorships
  • Spirit Wear
  • Product sales (think candy or beef jerky)
  • In-store donations, aka donation-with-purchase
  • Events or banquets that often include raffles

Each of these 6 tools has positives and negatives. 

For today, let's just focus on one, Spirit Wear, which is team or league-logo apparel worn by players or coaches or parents, but not game uniforms. Hoodies, sweats, jackets, t-shirts, hats are all popular Spirit Wear types. 

 

Spirit Wear is often branded apparel, featuring quality names such as UnderArmour, Adidas, Nike, Champion, Saucony, Easton.  As a result, Spirit Wear is typically a bit more expensive than uniforms.  For this reason, the amount of the retail price available to help leagues with fundraising is limited. For example, if a branded hoodie's base price is $50, buyers may pay an extra $10 or $15 for a Spirit Wear piece that contributes to fundraising, which brings the retail price up to $60 or $65.  But try to mark the item up $50, making the retail price $100, and you lose the sale.  

 

As a result, few teams or leagues can meet their entire fundraising requirement with Spirit Wear.  But because Spirit Wear pieces are cherished by their owners, they are an important piece of a league or team's money-raising puzzle.

 

But the old way of managing Spirit Wear--where the team or league managers takes orders, collects money, submits orders, takes delivery and handles distribution--is now being automated (by companies such as Squadlocker).  This automation makes the life of a team or league manager much more tolerable.   Call it the era of mobile Spirit Wear, where leagues and teams can raise 10% to 20% extra without ever having to touch an order or a check.  Check it out.


Subscribe to the Squad Blog

Join our squad in getting weekly updates on the most helpful content for your youth teams, sports clubs, students, and more.

SquadLocker
SquadLocker

More from the Squad Blog

SquadLocker Tees Off with Special Olympics Rhode Island

SquadLocker Tees Off with Special Olympics Rhode...

Read More
SquadLocker Supports Behavioral Health at the Check the Stigma Hockey Classic

SquadLocker Supports Behavioral Health at the...

Providence, RI - On Friday and Saturday, SquadLocker sponsored the Check the Stigma Hockey Classic. The event raises funds and awareness for mental health throughout Rhode Island.

Read More
Ordering Options to Improve Your Uniform Game

Ordering Options to Improve Your Uniform Game

With SquadLocker you’ve got options. You can choose the uniform ordering method that works best for you. We ship uniforms directly to each player or in bulk to one address. Either way, we can help...

Read More
Creating a Tightly Knit Community By Celebrating Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Creating a Tightly Knit Community By Celebrating...

June is a meaningful month from beginning to end. It is a month filled with community events and activities to signify the importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Today we celebrate...

Read More
See More Posts