The Minnesota Wild and Fanatics have joined forces in a long-term partnership aimed at revolutionizing the retail experience for Wild fans. Fanatics, a prominent global digital sports platform specializing in licensed sports merchandise, has become the official end-to-end retail partner for the team. This collaboration translates to Fanatics overseeing all physical retail locations at the Xcel Energy Center and managing the online store, HockeyLodge.com.
Prior to this partnership, Fanatics had been powering the Wild’s official e-commerce site through their league-wide agreement with the NHL. Now, with this extended partnership, both online and in-arena retail operations will be integrated to ensure a seamless shopping experience for fans, whether they are browsing online, on mobile devices, or attending games at the Xcel Energy Center.
Carin Anderson, the Senior Vice President of Corporate Partnerships and Retail Management for the Minnesota Wild, expressed her excitement about this new venture. She emphasized that fans can look forward to an enhanced shopping experience both online and at the revamped Xcel Energy Center store, with an increased variety and availability of their favorite team merchandise.
Fanatics will invest significantly in upgrading the retail spaces at the Xcel Energy Center, aiming to enhance the shopping experience during games and events. By combining e-commerce with in-venue retail, Fanatics seeks to provide a consistent and convenient shopping environment for all Wild fans.
Through their licensing agreement with the NHL, Fanatics will offer Wild fans an expanded range of high-quality team merchandise. This includes authentic and replica jerseys, fan apparel, headwear, and more. Beginning this season, Fanatics will also serve as the NHL’s official provider for on-ice uniforms, allowing fans to purchase the same Made-in-Canada on-ice jerseys worn by the players during games.
The retail offerings will not only feature Fanatics-branded products but also include items from other top brands such as Mitchell & Ness, New Era, WinCraft, and local favorites like UNRL, SotaStick, and Levelwear.
Ed O’Brien, the Senior Vice President of Business Development at Fanatics, conveyed his enthusiasm about the partnership, highlighting the significance of hockey in Minnesota’s culture. He reiterated Fanatics’ commitment to providing an unparalleled retail experience for fans to fully enjoy and support their team both on game days and beyond.
Fanatics has been diligently working on upgrades and renovations to The Hockey Lodge, the flagship retail location of the Wild. The store is preparing to unveil its new offerings on September 21, coinciding with the introduction of the new portfolio of authentic and replica jerseys by the NHL and Fanatics.
By teaming up with Fanatics, the Minnesota Wild becomes the third NHL team to have Fanatics oversee both in-venue and e-commerce retail operations. The Wild now joins other Minnesota-based sports organizations that have partnered with Fanatics, including the Timberwolves, Lynx, Vikings, and the University of Minnesota Athletics.
