OKC Hornets merchandise on its way out

Journal Record, The (Oklahoma City), Feb 14, 2007 by Kelley Chambers

Plain and simple the Hornets are going home to New Orleans at the end of the 2006-2007 basketball season.

And as the season winds down, the inevitable can be seen by the recent closing of the Hornets Nest gift shop in Oklahoma Tower.

Opened Dec. 1, 2005, the shop officially closed Jan. 26.

Jeff Jacobsen, Hornets senior vice president of corporate partnerships and merchandise, said the store closed although Hornets merchandise is still available.

"It was a decision we made based on slow store traffic and wanting to focus our sales at the Ford Center," he said. "If the traffic isn't there you have to make those kind of decisions."

Jacobsen said the team tried to adjust its inventory of specifically branded Oklahoma City merchandise to predict what would sell during the remainder of the season.

"We should be on track to have a good sell-through for Oklahoma City-specific merchandise," he said.

Over the last two seasons the team has spent here, Jacobsen said the Oklahoma City gear has continued to sell strong.

"We've probably sold two-to-one Oklahoma City-specific to generic Hornets merchandise," he said.

By closing the Hornets Nest, all of the store's contents were shifted to the Ford Center to catch fans and their pocketbooks on game nights.

Jacobsen also said Chris Paul jerseys have been top-sellers. Paul was the NBA rookie of the year last season. The Paul jerseys have been so popular that over the 2006 holiday season, jerseys bearing his name and number cracked the top 10 in overall NBA jersey sales.

Oklahoma City jerseys overall have been big sellers at the Hornets Nest and the Ford Center over the past year and a half.

Jacobsen said people have come in droves for Oklahoma City replica jerseys that run $50 for youth and $60 for adults.

Perhaps one of the last Hornets collectibles will be a red Oklahoma City jersey the team will wear on Valentine's Day during their game against the Sacramento Kings. Jacobsen said a limited number of the red jerseys will be available for sale for $75.

All of the red jerseys worn by players during the game will be auctioned off on Hornets.com and the proceeds will go to the American Heart Association and Hornets charities.

And even though most knew the team would probably not call Oklahoma its permanent home, Jacobsen said the merchandise has sparked a certain level of pride in Oklahoma fans.

"Fans in Oklahoma City have shown their support for the Hornets through their merchandise purchases," he said. "We're really excited that people made that brand association and took pride in wearing Hornets merchandise around town because it's been a special couple of years."