The Blackhawks on Friday opened the doors to their new 5,000-square-foot, two-story retail store on Chicago’s Magnificent Mile shopping strip. Wirtz Realty, an affiliate of the Wirtz Corp., which is helmed by Blackhawks Chair Rocky Wirtz, led the development of the location. The Blackhawks have run a smaller team store at the same location since ‘92, occupying just the first floor. With the team’s growth in popularity and extended success the past few years, there has been a significant uptick in a desire for team merchandise and memorabilia, which has played a part in the renovation. The new store is roughly four times as large. The store, which was designed by Chipman Design Architecture, is equipped to host both live radio and TV broadcasts and features a number of interactive features. Three large touchscreens, created by Montreal-based multimedia firm Moment Factory, will allow fans to play Blackhawks trivia games and view player stats, while a green screen developed by Kansas-based Dimensional Innovations will give fans a chance to virtually tour United Center locations and take photos with player images. As part of the grand opening, the team will provide the first 25 shoppers with signed jerseys and the next 100 with commemorative pucks. Fans on Saturday will be able to win tickets to that night’s Sabres-Blackhawks game and take part in an autograph signing with Hockey HOFer Tony Esposito.
