(Football news) Real Oviedo are continuing to experience a culture change at the club, thanks to the arrival of Grupo Pachuca in July 2022. Significant development and growth is being experienced in all areas and this is reflected in the large increase in sales at the institution’s official stores.
As of January 2024, the Asturian club had increased its sales by 28% when compared to the same time period from the previous year. They now aim to reach an income of 2.25 million euros in this area by the end of the season, which would be the club’s all-time record, as the highest sales figure reached until now has been 1.65 million euros.
The return of Santi Cazorla, an idol of the Real Oviedo fans, has logically helped boost shirt sales (more than 12,100 units have been sold with the academy graduate’s homecoming), but the club has also implemented digital improvements to its online store (realoviedo.shop) with the aim of enhancing the features on offer and meeting the needs of fans and supporters. All of this has contributed to this being the best moment for the club since sales data has been collected.
Improvements at the digital level
Explaining the improvements, Javier Fernández, Head of Stores at Real Oviedo, said: “A complete change was made to the online store, from the structuring of the product to the consumer journey (quick purchase buttons, filters, improved search), while the look and feel has also been radically changed. There are now product photos with a common, studied, coherent and attractive criteria for the customer, as well as a totally new homepage with links to collections.”
As for other key factors that have boosted the club’s sales, Fernández added: “We started to work on SEO in a very effective way and we set up the store’s own social media profiles, where we could communicate launches and events, interacting with customers directly and achieving a very satisfactory rate of engagement. Marketing campaigns were carried out for the launches of new items, from the kits themselves to campaigns for our own product collections with our own designs (Mi Team collection, Retro collection, Varsity collection, etc.). We also held raffles for our customers and other actions to build loyalty and improve the fan experience, all with the aim of growing our brand.”
This pursuit of increased convenience and satisfaction for the Real Oviedo fans has seen online sales through the website soar, achieving growth of 206.45% compared to last season.
Major changes to boost sales in the physical stores
As for the brick-and-mortar shops, several major changes were made that have boosted sales. One of these changes was the updated layout of products, which was implemented in the physical stores by updating furniture, shopping areas and customer flow. “All of this was possible thanks to the professionalisation of this department, which was placed in the hands of an industry professional with a proven track record,” Altea Espejo, Head of VM and Marketing of the official stores.
Updating the club’s corporate identity was also fundamental. The director continued: “In the physical stores, marketing campaigns are now carried out by rotating products and implementing the campaign through creative pieces, supporting cross merchandising to increase sales of a collection.”
Another decisive factor for Real Oviedo has been the scheduling of launches and their seasonality, providing customers with new pieces to encourage visits to the stores throughout the year. The club also wanted to highlight: “There has been monitoring of the sales team in relation to customer service, all of which is protocolised.”
The support of adidas, the club’s kit sponsor, led by Football Clubs Sports Marketing Manager Jorge Lostao, has been key in the whole process and project development.
After detailing all the improvements made, the Head of Stores at Real Oviedo revealed that the club has received orders from a variety of countries and regions, but there are two that catch the eye. He said: “We have received international orders from all continents, although there are two destinations that are, and have been for years, standing out above the rest. One is Mexico, due to the ties that unite us with our ownership group, and the other is the United Kingdom, as there is a very large and loyal community of Real Oviedo fans living in the British Isles.”
Lastly, Fernández pointed out that one key factor for the club is the “great loyalty of our fanbase when it comes to purchasing club merchandise”. Although there is a higher volume of sales around launch dates and at Christmas, he insisted that “sales of the kits are consistent”.
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