Lexington, KY – Joe Kawaja had a plan for the eventual expansion of Fan Outfitters when the first location opened in September 2009. The forty-year-old Kawaja, however, admits moving into Oklahoma wasn’t necessarily in the mix.
But now, nearly three years later, that’s exactly where the Lexington-based chain of sports-related merchandise stores is heading. Along with a fifth location in Kentucky (at Palomar Center), stores are set to open in Norman, Okla., and Moore, Okla., in coming months.
The moves not only allow Fan Outfitters to build upon the solid foundation it has established in Central Kentucky, it will provide an opportunity for the company to extend its brand outside of Kentucky in an effort to eventually establish itself as a national label.
“The plan was to be a national brand – that really was always the plan,” said Kawaja, co-founder of Fan Outfitters along with Stephen Dawahare. “Obviously you have to wait and see how it goes and Oklahoma wasn’t necessarily in that plan. But we knew we wanted to grow out of the state (of Kentucky). And after studying the markets – the demographics and so forth – it made a lot of sense.”
Fan Outfitters is extending its reach beyond Kentucky’s borders while also adhering to its core business model: specializing in collegiate merchandise and apparel focusing on local or regional universities.
The Oklahoma stores – which will create 60 new jobs in the Norman and Moore communities – will be based near the University of Oklahoma, a Division I university with an athletic program that enjoys strong support, particularly toward its storied football program.
That business model will be slightly broadened, however, with the expansion west. Placement in Oklahoma will expose Fan Outfitters to not only a new collegiate fan base, but to a professional following, as well. Kuwaja said the store will dip its toes for the first time into lines of professional team merchandise and apparel, beginning with the NBA’s Oklahoma City Thunder. If successful, the addition of that new revenue stream could help alleviate the franchise’s traditional downtime of late spring and early summer – or the months between the end of the college basketball season and the beginning of football season.
"We're excited to have them here, and I think this speaks well of our community. " said John Woods, president and CEO of the Norman Chamber of Commerce. "What they (Fan Outfitters) will find is a market experiencing a lot of retail growth, a passionate collegiate community and also a growing professional sports market. We're always excited to have homegrown businesses move into Oklahoma, particularly the Norman area, and we're happy they're coming."
Kawaja said a third Oklahoma location, this one in Oklahoma City, could open as soon as 2013 and if successful another state could be added to the franchise’s roster by the end of that year. Those moves would coincide with planned expansion within the next 12-18 months into Eastern Kentucky and Northern Kentucky, which, like the Oklahoma locations, would offer the opportunity to sell professional sports merchandise thanks to the proximity of Cincinnati and NFL and Major League Baseball teams.
The new Lexington store is scheduled to open no later than Sept. 1 and will occupy the 5,800-square foot space in Palomar Center currently in use by Do It Best Hardware (which is closing later this month). It joins the original Tates Creek location and the Hamburg store in Lexington, as well as Fan Outfitters in Louisville at St. Matthews and Summit -- which opened in 2010 and 2011, respectively.
Kawaja said a distribution center, which will create 40 new jobs, is also being developed and could open within the next six months. A Lexington location for that distribution center is still being secured.
“We’re just excited to build job growth in the communities,” Kawaja said. “ We started with 20 employees and by November we’ll be well over 100. Lexington will be the biggest beneficiary, obviously, but we want to spread that out and continue from there.”