WHAT ARE THE BESTSELLERS OF THE OFFICIAL AMERICA'S CUP STORES?
For the thousands of fans who visit the Race Village on the Moll de la Fusta in Barcelona, the official Louis Vuitton 37th America’s Cup store is a must. This shop, which opened on the first day of the Louis Vuitton Preliminary Regatta, is in addition to the store that has already been open for a year on Passeig de Colom.
Sales have been strong in the weeks since the start of racing at the Louis Vuitton 37th America’s Cup competition, with the top-performing products being “t-shirts, polo shirts and hats”, according to Guillermo, head of the Passeig de Colom shop.
“The popular items are the America's Cup branded ones, particularly the ones where the name ‘Barcelona’ appears, as these work very well to give as gifts,” adds Maria Eugenia, one of the managers of the store located in the Race Village.
However, there are many fans of the America's Cup – like sports fans everywhere – who are looking for items branded with their favourite team's logo. According to Guillermo: “These first days a lot of NYYC American Magic and Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli have been sold, because in the latter case, until now the material had not been available”. In fact, stocks of the Italian team gear regularly sell out on a weekly basis.
But what can we find in these stores? The product range is wide, starting with all kinds of clothing and footwear for men, women and children. Visitors can also choose from a wide range of backpacks, bags, belts, caps, sunglasses and towels, as well as lots of things that can be bought as souvenirs or to give away as presents: miniature reproductions of the trophy, pins, keyrings, or even a Lego model of the Emirates Team New Zealand AC75 race yacht. One of the best-selling products is a poster created by designer Jordi Labanda, which sold out the first week.
As for the price range of the products offered in the official stores, it is very wide, from 10 Euro for a pin, 12 Euro for a keychain, through to 50 Euro of a polo shirt, (one of the best-selling items), and up to around 400 Euro for a team jacket.
The souvenir products under 40 Euro sell well, but it is not uncommon for visitors – especially family groups – to ring up 500 Euro or more during a visit to the store. Danielle, a sales assistant for the past year at the Passeig de Colom store, remembers especially a 3,000 Euro purchase made by an American family.
According to her, American fans and those from Asian countries are the ones who usually make the biggest purchases. In the Maremàgnum shop they also remember a purchase of 1,200 Euro that only included products from the Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli collection.
As well as selling America's Cup products, according to Maria Eugenia, the shops are are acting as information points for visitors. “They ask us many questions about how this competition works," shes said "So it is important that the team of thirty people who work in the store is also trained to talk knowledgeably about it."
Jaime Sonia
Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup Volunteer
All products are also available at Official Louis Vuitton 37th America's Cup