In its biggest overhaul since changing its name from “Modell's Shoppers World” in the late 1980s to focus solely on sporting goods, Modell's Sporting Goods last week launched a comprehensive reinvention initiative entitled “Rebirth.” Prototypes that opened in Pelham and Bay Plaza in the Bronx include “category shops” that sell key sports from top to bottom, revamped footwear departments eliminating the display wall, and much clearer signage to provide shoppers a virtually unhindered view across the selling floor.
Speaking to around 120 vendors as well as bankers, licensing partners and real estate partners at a presentation at Yankees Stadium, company President Seth Horowitz said Rebirth can be summed up by a statement from CEO Mitchell Modell: “The Rebirth project will be our statement to the world that we are no longer an apparel company that happens to carry sporting goods but rather a sporting goods company that carries apparel.”
In particular, Horowitz said the project that has so far spanned 18 months is designed to better capitalize on Modell's position as the “local” destination for sporting goods while also improving its ability to deliver a “convenient and compelling” shopper experience to consumers.
The Yankee Stadium setting was designed to underscore the extent of the changes.
“This does not mean we're going to move one gondola of sporting goods and change the front of the store and call it a day,” said Horowitz. “Rebirth is a process of cultural change and a massive undertaking for the organization. It's cultural in making, which are the tougher changes to affect.”
For additional details on Modell's Rebirth initiative, look for this week's
issue of Sports Executive Weekly.
