Lions Renovating Team Store At Ford Field In Offseason, Making Concessionaire Switch

The Lions have "closed their team store inside Ford Field so it can be renovated after the club changes its merchandise concessionaire," according to Bill Shea of CRAIN'S DETROIT BUSINESS. The new store "will be open" before the '16 NFL season begins. The 5,500-square-foot retail shop "has been managed" since '09 by Indianapolis-based MainGate. But Lions Senior VP/Marketing & Partnerships Elizabeth Parkinson said that the deal "is expiring, and the Lions are in the process of negotiating a deal with an undisclosed replacement concessionaire." She added that the new merchandising deal "will include a new walk-in retail space being created elsewhere inside the stadium, although not as large as the current team store." Parkinson also said that the new retail arrangement "could include stand-alone merchandise and apparel locations inside Ford Field" for brands such as Nike. No cost estimate "has been disclosed for the renovated retail space and expansion elsewhere inside the stadium" (CRAIN'S DETROIT BUSINESS, 1/18 issue).