dpetzz Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 Sitting here getting ready to watch our U23s and the stream shows US fan after fan all dressed up in US soccer jerseys, shirts jackets etc. Finally the camera focusses on one Canadian fan sitting there in a Hockey Canada Jersey. This is exactly what is wrong with our marketing strategy. We don't have a marketable brand that we can be proud of. During the WWC here in Winnipeg we saw wave after wave of Americans in every possible type of outfit made by Nike. The number of outfits alone made me see how much money the USSF must make on this. Money means more spending and more resources to develop their next generation of players. It's not just the US, look at Italy (Puma), Germany & Mexico (Adidas) amongst other nations. Produce products people want to wear and then money can start coming in. I have several Umbro Canada jackets, shirts etc but that's only because of my connections in soccer but the majority of Canadians couldn't find someone even if they wanted to. Even during the WWC, it was like a treasure hunt to find anything Canadian outside of Sportchek. Beyond that, we need the CSA to start promoting fans to wear CSA gear not just anything with a Maple Leaf. Just my thoughts but to me any technical plan we want to do needs money and that means having a proper business plan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Admin Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 Well for us.... We are incorporating as a non profit. We will have three interesting things to create a branded and unique look to being a V in 2016. Our focus will be developing the very culture you are speaking of. I'm back working on this full time and more full of determination than before. It's about to get a lot better for us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Markoaleks Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 I agree with dpettz that there needs to be a better effort on all levels to promote CSA gear into the mainstream. It is a long process and starts with the great work the voyageurs do. I go to every Toronto home game and the support section is full of people with Canada soccer gear. In fact, there is a guy who has a circa 90's Score jersey which I love that I see in Supporters at games. Success, like the footy team, will be measured in steps and success will be when one can get a Jersey in Canada as easily as one can get a US MNT jersey, Italy, England.....etc. That day hopefully will come sooner than later I hope. With our dominant hockey culture here- we will never get to the level of SWAG that hockey has available in Canada but keep up with the efforts that boards like this and supporter culture can instill.I am sure Basketball Canada, Baseball Canada, Volleyball Canada etc. have the same issues to get more Share of mind and pocket of Canadian retailers of specific items to those sports too Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1zzurri Posted October 2, 2015 Share Posted October 2, 2015 Long Live Jamie!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dpetzz Posted October 2, 2015 Author Share Posted October 2, 2015 Don't get me wrong....The Voyagers do all they can for our teams...It's more of a CSA issue that needs to be addressed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lazlo_80 Posted October 3, 2015 Share Posted October 3, 2015 I mean, it sorta starts with cool looking merch, doesn't it? Nothing has touched those centennial jerseys and those were once upon a time. Everything in their store right now sucks. Also, this is sort of one of those "preparation meets opportunity" moments. You are someone who's on this board and knows this team better than most, if you think you can do better, go for it. There's alot of sports merch companies that have gotten big despite being unauthorized or fan based... Homage is one such clothing company that comes to mind. If you could make cool gear, trust me I'd be your first customer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperCanuck Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 Sitting here getting ready to watch our U23s and the stream shows US fan after fan all dressed up in US soccer jerseys, shirts jackets etc. Finally the camera focusses on one Canadian fan sitting there in a Hockey Canada Jersey. This is exactly what is wrong with our marketing strategy. We don't have a marketable brand that we can be proud of. During the WWC here in Winnipeg we saw wave after wave of Americans in every possible type of outfit made by Nike. The number of outfits alone made me see how much money the USSF must make on this. Money means more spending and more resources to develop their next generation of players. It's not just the US, look at Italy (Puma), Germany & Mexico (Adidas) amongst other nations. Produce products people want to wear and then money can start coming in. I have several Umbro Canada jackets, shirts etc but that's only because of my connections in soccer but the majority of Canadians couldn't find someone even if they wanted to. Even during the WWC, it was like a treasure hunt to find anything Canadian outside of Sportchek. Beyond that, we need the CSA to start promoting fans to wear CSA gear not just anything with a Maple Leaf. Just my thoughts but to me any technical plan we want to do needs money and that means having a proper business plan. Well said. There's not much to add to this since you've said everything I feel about this topic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmcmurph Posted October 10, 2015 Share Posted October 10, 2015 I mean, it sorta starts with cool looking merch, doesn't it? Nothing has touched those centennial jerseys and those were once upon a time. Everything in their store right now sucks. Absolutely. I loved those. Something so old that I didn't remember it. Very nice and not the seemingly obligatory red/white. Not that I mind that but it is too common to stand out and we only started being red & white in the 1960s when we changed our flag. Our soccer history goes way back further than that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
the Humberlands Posted October 11, 2015 Share Posted October 11, 2015 My logical guess is, when the team performs well and gets media-backed hype, people (casuals) will pay more attention and buy more gear. As for new gear, if we push and win the 2026 WC hosting rights (long shot) I can see the CSA promoting new gear going forward in support of the tournament. Big if though... In the mean time, a little more push in the marketing department would help. But we have to make people want to wear our gear first. Living in the GTA I still get a 50/50 split between people who are impressed that I have Canada soccer gear, to those who snicker or look at me like I'm a fool. The latter are the very same Daddy's boys who pride themselves in any other national team kit (other than Canada) on any given day, but when the winter Olympics are on they're 100% Canada (hockey) supporters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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