No more Authentic MLB jerseys on mlbshop.com ?

[aawagner011]

52 minutes ago, METDVLS said:

17 years is a LONG time.  I doubt it will last that long.  I bet after 5-10 years somebody wants out OR Fanatics goes out of business.  How many sports merchandise sites were there 15 years ago?  

 

Another alternative is getting eaten by a bigger fish.  I wouldn't be surprised if Amazon (or somebody like them) buys Fanatics.  Sports merchandise and sporting goods in general is a tough business.  Anybody remember FOGDOG?  MVP.com?  Too much inventory that you need to turn in retail.  Even with stuff on consignment - business in that realm is tough.  The only sporting goods store that seem to do well is Dick's and they turn inventory fast.  If it doesn't move - move it to clearance- both online and in the store.

While I agree with you that a contract for 17 years is a long time, let's keep things in perspective here. Sports merchandising and the rise of the Internet are both a relatively new phenomenon. People weren't sitting at home 15 years ago browsing the Internet to buy that brand new All Star game jersey.

 

This is what the Internet looked like 15 years ago:

 

http://motherboard.vice.com/blog/what-online-internet-websites-looked-like-in-2001

[aawagner011]

Disregard- DP

[Bouj]

I noticed today that they are adding back some of the MiLB low crowns that disappeared in the switch.  Hopefully, they are just taking time to add everything back into the system.

 

And if everyone is getting the new COOLBASE template, I will be cautiously optimistic that it is indeed a stock delay in getting the new authentics out and on sale (as someone said upthread).

[METDVLS]

20 minutes ago, aawagner011 said:

While I agree with you that a contract for 17 years is a long time, let's keep things in perspective here. Sports merchandising and the rise of the Internet are both a relatively new phenomenon. People weren't sitting at home 15 years ago browsing the Internet to buy that brand new All Star game jersey.

 

This is what the Internet looked like 15 years ago:

 

http://motherboard.vice.com/blog/what-online-internet-websites-looked-like-in-2001

I've been trolling the internet since 1998 looking for jerseys- My earliest all star jersey acquisition was a Mike Piazza 1999 All Star Jersey complete with red tshirt- bought from Fogdog.  

 

I agree that the internet has changed in the last 15 years but it has been around long enough for established companies find their business model-  but that doens't mean there is a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.  From an retailing standpoint for instance Amazon shocked the Street when they posted a 2Q profit this year with some Prime Days sales help.  They are WELL established on the internet, have a subscription program and still find it a struggle.  
 

That aside- retail is still retail and sports merchandising is not new.  Go look at old Sears catalogs if you want examples.   Forget about the internet for a second- there have been countless sporting goods and merchandise stores that have come and gone in the last 30 years.  From a team merchandising standpoint anybody remember The Complete Athlete?  BC Collectables?  Both big on the east coast and in worthwhile malls.  Complete Athlete closed 20 years ago and BC Collectibles practically closed 5 years ago (think they still have a few stores and a site). I got my first jersey while in college from the Complete Athlete and I got my Kerry Collins and Michael Strahan jerseys from BC- so believe me when I say team merchandising has been around along time.   

 

 

 

[METDVLS]

28 minutes ago, Bouj said:

I noticed today that they are adding back some of the MiLB low crowns that disappeared in the switch.  Hopefully, they are just taking time to add everything back into the system.

 

And if everyone is getting the new COOLBASE template, I will be cautiously optimistic that it is indeed a stock delay in getting the new authentics out and on sale (as someone said upthread).

Here is another question- what does this new coolbase/flexbase template look like?  Why hasn't anyone reported?  LUKAS and his uniwatch site haven't posted anything on it and he is well connected.  

[Bouj]

1 hour ago, METDVLS said:

Here is another question- what does this new coolbase/flexbase template look like?  Why hasn't anyone reported?  LUKAS and his uniwatch site haven't posted anything on it and he is well connected.  

 

I posted it in the MLB 2016 thread.  There is a pic of the Rockies wearing the template.  The Astros' new alt is the new template.  The new template does away with the underarm gussets and has sidepanels and sweat tail.  I'm not sure if he mentioned the new template during the D-Backs unveiling, because that's the first we saw of it.

 

 

 

[Bouj]

In regards to Authentics v Replicas: I spoke to one of the employees of the Astros Team Store at MMP.  They have the replica version of the Sunday alt.  It's the same thing as what MLBFanatics is selling at essentially the same price.  They don't have the authentic version yet, and probably won't until the end of March.

 

So yes, the Authentics will still be sold at retail (presumably once Majestic produces enough stock) but no way to know if MLBFanatics will have them.  I hope this doesn't mean a return to the days where you had to search far and wide for an actual authentic jersey.

[METDVLS]

7 hours ago, WSU151 said:

 

 

"Everything must go" sales are only for liquidation/going-out-of-business events.  The MLB Shop didn't go out of business, per se.

 

When team and college stores went from proprietary site to Fanatics, the proprietary sites didn't have "Everything must go" sales.

When MLB started taking over sites the Dodgers had a fire sale- didn't say closing and moving to central site- but $50 authentic jerseys were the tip off.  

 

I thought something was up with 40% off and did mention it to my wife- but over the last few years- discounts were getting deeper- so I shrugged it off.  

[Bucs007]

5 hours ago, METDVLS said:

Here is the $64,000 questions- why has Majsetic's site jacked the price up op BP Jerseys?  $140 for blank, $195 with name and number.

Yeah. I was wondering the same thing... Unless the BP jerseys are about to be employed as on-field alternates, it makes no sense. 

[johnnysama]

16 minutes ago, Bucs007 said:

Yeah. I was wondering the same thing... Unless the BP jerseys are about to be employed as on-field alternates, it makes no sense. 

That's just ridiculous to price the BP jerseys that high.

[jp1409]

9 hours ago, TheOldRoman said:

Damn. I completely missed the 50% and 60% off sales. I would have picked up a Sox jersey at those prices. We should have a thread on sales.

 

We should definitely be doing something like this...

[METDVLS]

14 hours ago, jp1409 said:

 

We should definitely be doing something like this...

There was always a thread on Jersey-Central.org that had sighting at discount stores like AJ Wright, TJ Maxx, Marshalls and Koss.  They always used to post who had good sales going, when and what they picked up.

 

But the discount store info was always important to me.  When you could get a discontinued jersey for $13, it is well worth it.  I still have TONS of the Mets old white pinstripe jerseys from the year the went to the ivory pinstripe.  Majestic must have dumped a ton of Jerseys on all three of the TJX stores.  I found authentic Wright, Reyes and Santana for jerseys for $16 and blanks for $13.  Two years later I loaded up on the ivory with the black under-shadowing for $30-$15.  Not to mention all of the black and snow white polyester jerseys they dumped when they went fully to coolbase.  Then loaded up again on the black and snow whites when the Mets dropped those styles.

 

Normally the discount "jersey season" starts mid-February and can run until June.  With the Mets dumping the ivories all together I had expected Majestic to send those to Marshalls as well- but none showed up here in upstate NY. 

 

I can only guess that Majestic's supply chain has tightened things up considerably.  I used to get dugout jackets, fleeces, turtlenecks, hats, game jerseys, BP jerseys all for pennies on the dollar regular retail.  The last two years have been VERY lean pickings.  With Fanatics not stocking authentics since at least August (had a gift certificate I was trying to spend) I suspect Majestic started cutting back production and supply to retailers early on.  We'll see over the next few weeks.  

 

If anyone spots anything  post it.  I'm curious. 

[jp1409]

There used to be something for discount stores but as Roman said, we'd need this for online stores. 40%-50% on brand new jerseys is a hell of a deal and these are tougher than ever to find especially with Fanatics taking over a lot of stores.

[METDVLS]

Well Lukas has finally decided to take up the conversation on what we've been kicking around here for a few days about the changes.  Doesn't sound like Majestic was sharing any info with him.

[TheOldRoman]

FYI, I started a thread in Sports In General for sales, discount codes and so forth. Hopefully people post future deals in there and maybe we can get the topic pinned.

 

As for Marshall's/TJ, I haven't had much luck there. I work in Chicago and live in the suburbs, so I've checked stores downtown and out by me. I saw a bunch of authentic Cubs blue jerseys about ten years ago, but I'm not a Cubs fan. I've seen lots of Bears jerseys after Urlacher retired and Brandon Marshall was traded, but those were pretty much the only jerseys I've come across en masse. I did see a Frank Thomas 83 throwback with a HOF patch on it; they only had one, and I now kick myself for not buying it. But other than a bunch of t-shirts and Nike base-layer stuff, the only Sox gear I've come across is a Mitchell and Ness wool jacket "reduced" to like $200, which stayed on the same rack for about a year.

[BRice16]

21 hours ago, Bouj said:

In regards to Authentics v Replicas: I spoke to one of the employees of the Astros Team Store at MMP.  They have the replica version of the Sunday alt.  It's the same thing as what MLBFanatics is selling at essentially the same price.  They don't have the authentic version yet, and probably won't until the end of March.

 

So yes, the Authentics will still be sold at retail (presumably once Majestic produces enough stock) but no way to know if MLBFanatics will have them.  I hope this doesn't mean a return to the days where you had to search far and wide for an actual authentic jersey.

 

Authentic jerseys will be available on the new MLB Shop/Fanatics once the season begins, possibly sooner. 

[METDVLS]

1 hour ago, TheOldRoman said:

FYI, I started a thread in Sports In General for sales, discount codes and so forth. Hopefully people post future deals in there and maybe we can get the topic pinned.

 

As for Marshall's/TJ, I haven't had much luck there. I work in Chicago and live in the suburbs, so I've checked stores downtown and out by me. I saw a bunch of authentic Cubs blue jerseys about ten years ago, but I'm not a Cubs fan. I've seen lots of Bears jerseys after Urlacher retired and Brandon Marshall was traded, but those were pretty much the only jerseys I've come across en masse. I did see a Frank Thomas 83 throwback with a HOF patch on it; they only had one, and I now kick myself for not buying it. But other than a bunch of t-shirts and Nike base-layer stuff, the only Sox gear I've come across is a Mitchell and Ness wool jacket "reduced" to like $200, which stayed on the same rack for about a year.

That is surprising.  AJ Wright which was owned by TJX always had hats jackets (still kicking myself for not picking up that Mets Cooperstown Elevation jacket), NFL jerseys and a few out of the area MLB jerseys, Orioles, Red Sox, and Rays.  TJ Maxx had some Giants Mitchell & Ness jerseys that flew off the shelves @ $79/ea.  Marshalls is the one that had an abundant Mets jerseys, hats fleeces and jackets.  There were always guys posting on the other boards about finding NBA, NFL, NFL and MLB authentics out in California on a regular basis.

 

I will say there are always good buys to be had on Ebay.  As long as you clearly see that the picture of what you are buying shows a real jersey- you can tell what is real and what is fake.  I've gotten 75% of my NON-Mets jersey collection from one guy I trust.  Been to his store and seen and touched everything.  I've gotten my '72 throw back Sox jersey from him, my 1917 Majestic Sox throwback, all my Konerko jerseys even my Jays Canada Day Clemens jersey.  Some I've bought some I've bid (really cheap) and I've NEVER gotten a fake jersey from him.  But the point is once you find somebody you trust- you keep going back.  And if you find you've gotten a fake jersey- tell them to take it back.  Paypal always protects you.

 

 

[TheOldRoman]

Yeah, I've bought several jerseys on ebay in the past. The cheapest I ever found an authentic black Sox jersey for was $90.

 

Was Jersey-Central replaced? I remember about 7 years ago I was on two jersey cites. One was Jersey Central. There was also a website the either replaced JC or shut down and was replaced by JC. Anyway, JC is not up right now. Anything like it still active?

[AnPheitseog]

at least for Orioles stock, majestic has repopulated the store

 

too bad it is a 52 and not a 48 in the grey jersey, would have gotten one

[soxkrazy]

9 hours ago, TheOldRoman said:

Yeah, I've bought several jerseys on ebay in the past. The cheapest I ever found an authentic black Sox jersey for was $90.

 

Was Jersey-Central replaced? I remember about 7 years ago I was on two jersey cites. One was Jersey Central. There was also a website the either replaced JC or shut down and was replaced by JC. Anyway, JC is not up right now. Anything like it still active?

The other site was Next Level Talk. Both sites are gone. You could try Game Used Universe. There is some jersey talk, but it centers mostly around buying and selling game-worn/team-issued memorabilia.