The WNBA "expects major growth" in licensed sales
"thanks largely to fans swinging away from the lockout-
tainted NBA, and also to the collapse" of the ABL, according
to Brian Biegel of SPORTSTYLE. Nicole Blake, PR Manager of
Champion Athletics, the exclusive apparel licensee of the
WNBA, noted that the company's sales have "tripled" after
the league's second year. Walter Whitaker, Sales Manager of
360, a sporting goods store in NY, said, "Since the NBA
[lockout], or even before that, we've seen a huge interest
in fleece and replica jerseys for the WNBA." Whitaker: "It
seems that teenage girls have really caught on to the WNBA."
Whitaker said 360 is "cutting back on NBA floor space, and
giving half to WNBA" (SPORTSTYLE, 2/99 issue).
CHECKS ARE IN THE MAIL: Nike Manager of Corporate
Communications Vizhier Mooney said that the company, which
ceased paying endorsement fees to NBA players during the
lockout, "will resume mailing" endorsement checks to
players, but wouldn't "disclose" whether the payments "will
be retroactive" (SPORTSTYLE, 2/99 issue).
