CHICAGO - Campus Ink has announced the launch of a new NIL blanks program to elevate its support of University athletics programs in its Retail Store network.
Campus Ink’s NIL blanks program will allow retailers the flexibility to decorate NIL products on-site without bearing the burden of carrying unnecessary retail quantities. The made-to-order technology will plug and play directly into retail stores, giving fans an interactive experience with an ordering kiosk and all equipment necessary. Fans can watch their favorite NIL gear produced in minutes.
Solution Reduces NIL Inventory Risk
This solution aims to reduce the inventory risk associated with NIL apparel and gives retail partners flexibility. As fans check out in-store, athletes will be paid via the NIL Store. The program is run under Campus Ink's private label, “Urban Champs,” to give retailers comfort that Campus Ink and the NIL Store remains a partner to participating locations.
Given that NIL Jerseys are some of the best sellers, they have traditionally been stricken by longer lead times. Campus Ink will keep retailers stocked throughout the season with blank jerseys, pre-cut transfers, and live inventory tracking of supplies to support real-time replenishment. Campus Ink's platform tackles hard-to-track tasks like licensing, athlete payout, and inventory for clean reporting, making it painless for all parties involved.
“We’re listening to our partners and are committed to helping them innovate while remaining true to our goal.” said Adam Cook, VP of Sports at Campus Ink. “We know the intricacies of managing and upholding our integrity for all parties and are committed to ensuring the program is beneficial for all. When a marketing moment arises for an NIL athlete, we can send retailers heat applied transfers to participate in a merch drop.”
Campus Ink Built for NIL Solution
Campus Ink stands alone as one of the only vertically integrated NIL Solutions in the space producing apparel for nearly 7,000 athletes out of their own facility in Urbana, Illinois. It has been at the forefront of the decorated apparel industry by investing heavily in on-demand decoration technology.
With a deep understanding and passion for pushing the bounds of printing & automation, Campus Ink CEO, Steven Farag works closely with CTO, Neel Kothari, and VP of Sports, Adam Cook.
As an early engineer from Printavo, the printing industry's defacto management software, Kothari understands the pain points associated with the industry and is on the front lines to solve them. Kothari has built technology for thousands of printing companies around the country. Cook, an early sales person for the software company, spent time developing implementation & onboarding programs for decorators.
“Since we have removed the inventory risk for ourselves, asking retail partners to place purchase orders for higher-risk items that could turn stale if a player transfers or gets injured felt a little hypocritical,” said Steven Farag, Campus Ink Co-Founder and CEO. “Understanding the fluid nature of collegiate sports, we felt obligated to innovate on behalf of our retail partners. This blanks program affords retailers the much-needed flexibility to support NIL merchandise. They'll receive blank jerseys in four weeks and transfers in four days.”
Athletes in the NIL Store on participating universities are among the highest paid in the industry and revenue is shared directly with each item sold. Campus Ink maintains their reputation by also providing real time transparency, and paying athletes out twice per month.
Campus Ink Proves Concept in 2022
To prove the concept, during the 2022 March Madness tournament, Campus Ink set up a pop-up experience in downtown Chicago and let fans produce jerseys for their alma mater, Illinois, during the tournament. While the pop-up was just a proof of concept, Campus Ink has no intention of brick-and-mortar locations and is committed to working in lockstep with retailers.
Gameday Spirit to Pilot Program
“It’s a forward-thinking solution, which is in line with how Campus Ink has approached the NIL market," said Gameday Spirit's Chris Grussing. “Some people will just love it for the novelty of it because it's really innovative.”
An early partner and advocate, Gameday Spirit will be piloting the program at their locations at Northwestern. Gameday Spirit has retail & in-venue locations in Illinois, Indiana, Ball State, Ohio University and Kent State.
Retailers may still wholesale pre-decorated items with low minimum quantity and quick turnarounds in addition to participating in the blanks program. The program will debut in Las Vegas this January at the Sportswear Licensing and Tailgate Show.
For more information on our blanks program, contact: Jenna Koss - jenna@campus.ink.