Elks: Edmonton Elks Part 2

[Drivesaitl]

It's out in our neck of the weeks, so a popular spot for our family. Used to be a hidden gem, but unfortunately getting busy with people hoping to get their 'bison moment' photo to post on their social media sites. I avoid weekends there now.

But is it on instagram....heh, shit. Good for the park I guess but just tell us which spots to avoid now..I guess bison paddocks must be busier now. As with any such place the good thing is you can walk 15mins from any carpark and encounter more animals than people and sometimes one and the same.. Great place though, really enjoy it. Time to get back out there.

 

[K1984]

Is 3 home games of merchandise sales even a lot? How many people are buying merchandise at a game, maybe 1 in 5 at best? Roughly that's 30-40,000 items (if that's how that is being measured), which isn't really a lot in a city of 1.5M people especially when you consider that it's a fair assumption that enthusiastic adopters that bought merch right out of the gate probably bought more than one item.

"As many as 3 home games" sounds impressive, but it really isn't when you think about it.

 

[bellagiobob]

Is 3 home games of merchandise sales even a lot? How many people are buying merchandise at a game, maybe 1 in 5 at best? Roughly that's 30-40,000 items (if that's how that is being measured), which isn't really a lot in a city of 1.5M people especially when you consider that it's a fair assumption that enthusiastic adopters that bought merch right out of the gate probably bought more than one item.

"As many as 3 home games" sounds impressive, but it really isn't when you think about it.

I would say 1 in 5 is being really generous. In a crowd of 30,000, I would guess a good night would be to sell something to 1,000 people. Most people that attend games are STH’s who for the most part have all the team gear they need, 10 times over. No shock a brand new logo and name is selling better than the merchandise that people have accumulated for over 70 years. I actually expected the numbers for the new merchandise to actually be way higher than they’ve announced. This is simply cost recovery for the huge cost of brand change, the only thing that matters is how many of these people buy tickets, and continue to support the team year after year.

 

[Drivesaitl]

Is 3 home games of merchandise sales even a lot? How many people are buying merchandise at a game, maybe 1 in 5 at best? Roughly that's 30-40,000 items (if that's how that is being measured), which isn't really a lot in a city of 1.5M people especially when you consider that it's a fair assumption that enthusiastic adopters that bought merch right out of the gate probably bought more than one item.

"As many as 3 home games" sounds impressive, but it really isn't when you think about it.

Over estimation I think. Esks games are not like Oilers games in that sense, and the average ticket buyer is looking at cheaper option entertainment. With Oilers the denizens tend to be price is no limit. Eskimos fans are a lot different. Which is to say sensibly cheap. heh

In anycase the Eskimos hover around 1M in annual merchandise sales (not merchandising profit, just sales, so thats REALLY low)

2019-Edmonton-Eskimos-Annual-Report.pdf (d3ham790trbkqy.cloudfront.net)


Works out to about an average of 3bucks spent per game per fan. For perspective that is 1/8 what people spend on tickets to the games. in most recent season fans payed 4X as much on concessions. They aren't changing the beer, haha. unless its now called elk piss.

So that 3 games of merchandising sales would be say 275K in sales. is that a lot for a complete new branding. Of this not sure of the overhead or profit margin but maybe a slight profit so far.

Interestingly in the cited audit the Eskimos report 967K merchandising sales and nearly 963 nerchandising expenses and admin. So really negligible profit on a complete season of merchandise.

In anycase an as yet unfactored cost is the amount of Eskimos stuff they put on firesale, and whether they liquidated much of that cost expense product, and how much they lost on that, and if thats included in the estimated 1M cost of rebrand.

 

[Captain Fantastic]

For interest sake:
July 16, 2020 3DownNation Poll
Empire 48.5 % (winner)
Elks 29,8%
Other 21.7 %
(1589 votes)

July 21, 2020 CFL News Poll
Elks 29,9%
Express 13.6%
Empire 47.6% (winner)
Energy 8.9%
(1132 votes)

July 22, 2020 Subway Canada Poll
Empire 25.4%
Elks 31.4 % (winner)
Energy 17 %
Other 25.8 %
(1782 votes)

*July 22nd. Chris Presson excludes "Empire" as a possible name.

July 24, 2020 Edmonton Sun Poll
Elks 28.1 %
Energy 39.1% (winner)
Elons (wtf?) 1.6%
Eagles 31.2%
(516 votes)

March 13 2021 CFL NEWS Poll of the 4 final names
Elk 35,3 % (winner)
Elkhounds 21.8%
Eagles 30,5%
Eclipse 12.4%
(564 votes)

Well , there you have it. Seems with football news sites, Empire was the overwhelming favorite (mine too) before the exclusion announcement. Elk(s) did well in the others. I find all this interesting but it did bring back my annoyance with Presson as well. All good though. I'll cheer on my Elks and sometimes Als. Final results of my poll are in the other thread.

 

[bellagiobob]

For interest sake:
July 16, 2020 3DownNation Poll
Empire 48.5 % (winner)
Elks 29,8%
Other 21.7 %
(1589 votes)

July 21, 2020 CFL News Poll
Elks 29,9%
Express 13.6%
Empire 47.6% (winner)
Energy 8.9%
(1132 votes)

July 22, 2020 Subway Canada Poll
Empire 25.4%
Elks 31.4 % (winner)
Energy 17 %
Other 25.8 %
(1782 votes)

*July 22nd. Chris Presson excludes "Empire" as a possible name.

July 24, 2020 Edmonton Sun Poll
Elks 28.1 %
Energy 39.1% (winner)
Elons (wtf?) 1.6%
Eagles 31.2%
(516 votes)

March 13 2021 CFL NEWS Poll of the 4 final names
Elk 35,3 % (winner)
Elkhounds 21.8%
Eagles 30,5%
Eclipse 12.4%
(564 votes)

Well , there you have it. Seems with football news sites, Empire was the overwhelming favorite (mine too) before the exclusion announcement. Elk(s) did well in the others. I find all this interesting but it did bring back my annoyance with Presson as well. All good though. I'll cheer on my Elks and sometimes Als. Final results of my poll are in the other thread.

Pretty cool system. We will eliminate all names that are more favoured by fans than our chosen name, until our chosen name is most popular, and announce it as the fans choice.

 

[MoontoScott]

Pretty cool system. We will eliminate all names that are more favoured by fans than our chosen name, until our chosen name is most popular, and announce it as the fans choice.

But we all know the reason why "Empire" could not be used.

 

[Captain Fantastic]

Pretty cool system. We will eliminate all names that are more favoured by fans than our chosen name, until our chosen name is most popular, and announce it as the fans choice.

Yup, and that's what ticked me off.

But we all know the reason why "Empire" could not be used.

Very lame reason at that. I guess the Indoor Football League's Albany Empire should change the name of their team. So darn offensive. Empire State Building...The Empire State of New York. Change it all. Strange how Empire means colonialism but EE were fine using ONE EMPIRE without a peep from anyone. Anyway, time to move forward but it's pure bull shit nonetheless.

 

[MoontoScott]

Yup, and that's what ticked me off.

Very lame reason at that. I guess the Indoor Football League's Albany Empire should change the name of their team. So darn offensive. Empire State Building...The Empire State of New York. Change it all. Strange how Empire means colonialism but EE were fine using ONE EMPIRE without a peep from anyone. Anyway, time to move forward but it's pure bull shit nonetheless.

I agree on all counts including the fact that its time to move forward.

I hope a few guys will join me in looking at the EE roster and breaking down some of the positions and the relative strengths and weaknesses--like I did yesterday with the defensive backfield which I think will be improved.

Anything but the virus and the cancel culture...I need relief.

 

[bone]

I would say 1 in 5 is being really generous. In a crowd of 30,000, I would guess a good night would be to sell something to 1,000 people. Most people that attend games are STH’s who for the most part have all the team gear they need, 10 times over. No shock a brand new logo and name is selling better than the merchandise that people have accumulated for over 70 years. I actually expected the numbers for the new merchandise to actually be way higher than they’ve announced. This is simply cost recovery for the huge cost of brand change, the only thing that matters is how many of these people buy tickets, and continue to support the team year after year.

Probably would have been higher but almost anything sized Large or Extra Large were sold out in minutes.

For the game day sales, I'd agree. As a season ticket holder for 20+ years, I don't buy stuff every game. Often I go a full season without buying any merch. Considering a large portion of the audience is STHs, I suspect I'm not alone.

 

[Drivesaitl]

For interest sake:
July 16, 2020 3DownNation Poll
Empire 48.5 % (winner)
Elks 29,8%
Other 21.7 %
(1589 votes)

July 21, 2020 CFL News Poll
Elks 29,9%
Express 13.6%
Empire 47.6% (winner)
Energy 8.9%
(1132 votes)

July 22, 2020 Subway Canada Poll
Empire 25.4%
Elks 31.4 % (winner)
Energy 17 %
Other 25.8 %
(1782 votes)

*July 22nd. Chris Presson excludes "Empire" as a possible name.

July 24, 2020 Edmonton Sun Poll
Elks 28.1 %
Energy 39.1% (winner)
Elons (wtf?) 1.6%
Eagles 31.2%
(516 votes)

March 13 2021 CFL NEWS Poll of the 4 final names
Elk 35,3 % (winner)
Elkhounds 21.8%
Eagles 30,5%
Eclipse 12.4%
(564 votes)

Well , there you have it. Seems with football news sites, Empire was the overwhelming favorite (mine too) before the exclusion announcement. Elk(s) did well in the others. I find all this interesting but it did bring back my annoyance with Presson as well. All good though. I'll cheer on my Elks and sometimes Als. Final results of my poll are in the other thread.

I forget which audit it was on but the Eskimos spent around 1M one season on the Empire slogans and advertising alone. afairc it was Len Rhodes baby and he took heat for the expenditure. That name was widely mocked here as well. In short people from out of town want the Eskimos named Empire, as in "Evil Empire". Eskimos fans themselves tended to be not as charitable about the name. One can't sort out Eskimos fans vs other fans in the polls. A lot of people vote, not just specifically eskimos fans. I mean in some of the polls that so manyy voted Eclipse or Elkhounds I view as sarcastic trolling votes.

I have no doubt people around the league wanted us called Empire, further to the injoke.

 

[Stoneman89]

I would say 1 in 5 is being really generous. In a crowd of 30,000, I would guess a good night would be to sell something to 1,000 people. Most people that attend games are STH’s who for the most part have all the team gear they need, 10 times over. No shock a brand new logo and name is selling better than the merchandise that people have accumulated for over 70 years. I actually expected the numbers for the new merchandise to actually be way higher than they’ve announced. This is simply cost recovery for the huge cost of brand change, the only thing that matters is how many of these people buy tickets, and continue to support the team year after year.

And the cost recovery for name change needs to be based on EXTRA merch sales over and above what they normally would sell at any time, so that needs to be taken into consideration. The last year, I would suspect they sold next to nothing for merch(other than the clearance sales of old stuff) since everything was on hold due to the future name change. Kind of like selling off the rest of your old model vehicles and then having to wait several months before the new models come in. And then you get an expected rush at the beginning.

 

[Gunnersaurus Rex]

Keep in mind that these are online sales only. The team store is still closed so there's nowhere for people to get it in person yet.

There are probably plenty of people like me who will not buy clothing online. I want to see it, check the fabric and fit before I buy. So once the store is open, my family and I will be heading down and likely dropping close to a grand on the new stuff.

 

[Drivesaitl]

Keep in mind that these are online sales only. The team store is still closed so there's nowhere for people to get it in person yet.

There are probably plenty of people like me who will not buy clothing online. I want to see it, check the fabric and fit before I buy. So once the store is open, my family and I will be heading down and likely dropping close to a grand on the new stuff.

hardly anybody goes to the Team store outside that general area. Been in there a number of times and the place is empty save for ticket staff. As I posted the Eskimos don't sell a lot of merchandise and so that the "we sold as much as 3 games" is pretty meh.

In anycase since you've told the thread multiple times your own alleged decision to drop a grand on this stuff is far from typical considering the team does around 1M in merchandise sales in a typical season. The average Eskimos fan buys a hat or scarf or toque which I've recounted with the sales volume numbers.

 

[Drivesaitl]

And the cost recovery for name change needs to be based on EXTRA merch sales over and above what they normally would sell at any time, so that needs to be taken into consideration. The last year, I would suspect they sold next to nothing for merch(other than the clearance sales of old stuff) since everything was on hold due to the future name change. Kind of like selling off the rest of your old model vehicles and then having to wait several months before the new models come in. And then you get an expected rush at the beginning.

I posted the actual merchandise sales numbers on the previous page. Its no mystery, its released in all the annual reports, and its next to nothing. Like I said per average the merchandise sales per game, per fan in attendance is like 3bucks. But that would only be assuming that zero other sales, outside of games, ever takes place.

 

[CantHaveTkachev]

Empire is bland and boring IMO

 

[Yukon Joe]

The problem with Empire is - how do you depict it? How do you market it?

What's a cool logo that shouts "Empire". What kind of interesting merch can you sell with that name?

Nothing at all comes to mind. You're just stuck with wordmarks. Whereas we've seen just a hint of what you can do with Elks.

 

[K1984]

The problem with Empire is - how do you depict it? How do you market it?

What's a cool logo that shouts "Empire". What kind of interesting merch can you sell with that name?

Nothing at all comes to mind. You're just stuck with wordmarks. Whereas we've seen just a hint of what you can do with Elks.

It isn't really that hard. Crowns, swords, war helmets, thrones, etc. Maybe a Crown with "EE" on it sitting on top of a football as a 3rd logo. Tons you can do with a bit of thought. Plus the added benefit of retaining the EE and all other team related branding that this organization mystifyingly decided to write off.

If every team brand required an animal appendage to market it then every single team would be named this way.

How do the Blue Jackets, Lightning, Oilers (!), Senators, Flames etc, etc, etc market? There are opportunities in every brand and its dubious thinking to assume that there are materially more opportunities in "Elks" than there is with "Eskimos" or "Empire."

So far the purported genius in all these marketing opportunities is the antlers, which is pretty thin when we are talking about what is supposed to be a major upgrade in marketability.

 

[yukoner88]

heh, this thought occurred to me as well. But todays selective brand of world changers strangely like 3lbs of meat sitting on the plate and wax on about piling meat in their gullet. Its not yesterdays veggie save the planet types, lets just say.

btw I was joking about the Elk Burger, but who knows, wild meat is pretty damned good.

But yeah, theres always going to be a target. I mean JK Rowling was a hero growing up to many of these people. Until she started saying real word and not hobbit type things, or whatever dreck she writes about. I bring that up not to be OT. Its symbolic of what you say, and that everthing and everybody will be a target at some point. In the words of Handy Warhole everybody gets their 15mins of being set on fire..

Of the red meats, Elk is actually the healthiest for a human being to consume. So there's marketing there too!!


All jokes aside though, if they do Elk burgers, they'd be a hit, it's such a naturally savory flavored meat. There was a place that had Elk burgers on the menu in Dawson City on the menu, it was so f***ing good, went best with a side poutine. It was such a hit in town, the owner of the joint couldn't keep up with demand.

If they do an Elk burger and poutine special at Commonwealth, I'd literally park my rig in Sherwood park and cab it in just to have it again.

 

[Stoneman89]

Keep in mind that these are online sales only. The team store is still closed so there's nowhere for people to get it in person yet.

There are probably plenty of people like me who will not buy clothing online. I want to see it, check the fabric and fit before I buy. So once the store is open, my family and I will be heading down and likely dropping close to a grand on the new stuff.

Receipts or it didn't happen!

 

[bellagiobob]

Of the red meats, Elk is actually the healthiest for a human being to consume. So there's marketing there too!!


All jokes aside though, if they do Elk burgers, they'd be a hit, it's such a naturally savory flavored meat. There was a place that had Elk burgers on the menu in Dawson City on the menu, it was so f***ing good, went best with a side poutine. It was such a hit in town, the owner of the joint couldn't keep up with demand.

If they do an Elk burger and poutine special at Commonwealth, I'd literally park my rig in Sherwood park and cab it in just to have it again.

I got a good chuckle out of your post. I would love to see the Elks announce this just to see the outrage on social media.

 

[bellagiobob]

 

[bellagiobob]

 

[Stoneman89]

"35% of the Stadium capacity must be available to fans"

Pretty sure we should be there no problem in Edmonton.

 

[oilers'72]

Is that Brock Ralph or Dieter (don't call me Ralph) Brock?