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Professional Profits
Chalk Up Solid Fall Sales to Pro Football Programs
By Andy Ashby
FUN facts about professional football: In 1899, a player named Chris O’Brien formed a neighborhood team, which played under the name the Morgan Athletic Club, on the south side of Chicago. The team later became known as the Normals, then the Racine (for a street in Chicago) Cardinals, the Chicago Cardinals, the St. Louis Cardinals, the Phoenix Cardinals and, in 1994, the Arizona Cardinals. The team remains the oldest continuing operation in pro football. In 1904, a field goal was changed from five points to four, and in 1909, it was changed from four points to three. Due to young men departing for service for WWII, the Cardinals and the Steelers were granted permission to merge for one year under the name Card-Pitt, April 21, 1944.
In 2006, the perhaps the most fun football fact of all is how much profit it provides bar operators. Including but not limited to increases in food and beverage sales, promotion entrance fees and guest traffic, pro football is a major financial highlight for owners from summer pre-season start-up to the big bowl at winter’s end. So, what could not be fun about pure profit from the pigskin? Unlike some of the upcoming games on the calendar this year, it’s a sure bet.
Get a Break on the Barrels
Ron “Bear” Madej has been running the Chicago Bear Sports Bar & Grill with his three daughters for the past 22 years. It’s a mom-and-pop-type joint that doesn’t use a lot of gimmicks to please its crowds of hungry and thirsty Chicago Bears fans. Before a fire several years ago, the bar had 165 photos with captions, all showing its loyal customer base.
The Chicago Bear Sports Bar & Grill staff uses three distributors to bring in beer. In addition to the Miller Lite vendor, the bar gets deliveries of Budweiser products and Old Style. With these beers, distributors give a barrel of beer for every five they sell.
“When I opened this bar, I wanted to make it the type of place I always wanted to go to when I was younger,” Madej says.
Miller Lite always has been the best-seller at the bar — as much as three to one — according to Madej. This neighborhood bar, which holds about 130 people, is absolutely packed on game day, he says. One reason is because Madej puts out a free buffet that includes various meats, salads and potato dishes.
“Food is the big draw,” Madej says. “Of course, it’s also the Bears, because the people here are fanatics.”
The Chicago Bear Sports Bar & Grill staff uses three distributors to bring in beer. In addition to the Miller Lite vendor, the bar gets deliveries of Budweiser products and Old Style. With these beers, distributors give a barrel of beer for every five they sell.
Playing to the Ladies
Downtown Johnny Brown’s has been serving the San Diego sports fan community for more than 18 years. The bar has rotating taps that feature domestics, but they also pour local products from Stone, Alpine, Alesmith, Port Pizza and Coronado brewing companies for the local San Diego Charger fans.
The bar also has specials that appeal to the football-hungry masses as much as regular customers. The staff there features a beer of the day for $3 a glass and $12 a pitcher, with Bud and Coors Light selling for $10 a pitcher. Domestic bottles are $2.50, which includes Bud, Bud Light, Coors, Coors Light, Miller Genuine Draft and Miller Lite.
There also are wine specials, with Woodbridge’s Chardonnay, Merlot, Cabernet and White Zinfandel selling for $3.50 a glass.
The food attracts people, as well, with a variety of menu items available at discounted prices. From the chips and salsa for $1.75 to the Buffalo strips or Buffalo wings for $3.87 an order, there is something for everyone to munch on during a sporting event.
To help procure patron loyalty, the bar also features customer appreciation cards, where patrons get punched after every meal. After the 10th mark, they get a meal on the house.
Bigger & Better Beer Deals
Slugger’s, a popular sports bar in Seattle, enjoys a big impact from the local NFL franchise, the Seahawks.
“It’s huge; our business increases drastically when there’s a game,” Owner Shelly Quinn says.
Slugger’s is directly across the street from the Seahawks’ football stadium and has the financial opportunities of 91 sporting events each year, all happening in the neighborhood — 81 baseball and 10 football games. Any playoff games are gravy for Slugger’s, bringing in additional events and consequently additional revenue.
Quinn doesn’t have a cover charge at Slugger’s because she tries to draw as many people in to buy beer, spirits and food “Being an event bar, you want to make as much money as you can,” she says. Needless to say, with such access to the action, the bar can get extremely crowded during game day. “It’s kind of like a bowling alley,” Quinn says. “You fit what space you can fit with patrons and try to leave enough room for the waitresses to walk through.”
Slugger’s operators don’t offer promotions during games because the bar already is crowded enough with the bar being four-deep. However, the bar does receive attentive support from its distributors on game day. “They just make sure that they have a truck in the area so you never run out of beer,” Quinn says. Just like any good Northwestern bar, Slugger’s has a solid beer selection with 27 taps and around 20 bottles.
What helps draw the game day crowd in are the 32-ounce domestic beers selling for $7 — a great deal, especially when compared to NFL stadium prices. “It costs you $7 for a 12-ounce beer across the street, so they would rather buy a 32-ouncer here,” Quinn says. At Slugger’s, Bud and Bud Light are the leading sellers, and Quinn thinks it might be because they are a major sponsor of a lot of sporting events. Miller Lite is the second-best-selling domestic during the NFL season. The various micro beers sell well, including the locally-produced Mac and Jacks from Redmond, Wash., as well as Alaskan and Red Hook beers.
When it comes to food, cheeseburgers do the best, with hot wings being a hot seller for football fans. “Baseball is mostly a family affair, while footballs is mostly the guys, so they do a lot of finger food like wings,” Quinn says.
Baseball activity packs Slugger’s during the summer and fall, while football adds customers during the winter and fall weekends — and that’s when Happy Hour prices really start to pay off. Specials, including $2.50 for a 16-ounce domestic and $3.50 for a 16-ounce import, have been a hit with patrons. However, the real moneymaker always will be football at Slugger’s, as evidenced by a big-screen television and 37 other sets placed around the bar for everyone to see.
“We really revolve around the sports that are going on in Seattle,” Quinn says.
If You Build It
Just like any good National Football League team, a bar should have some basic plays in order to be successful on game day.
One obvious play is to have as complete a sports television package as possible.
To help draw in patrons before the game, Slugger’s, in Seattle, has every sports television package available in the area. This keeps people in the bar from well before the game until well after the game.
Putting out a free buffet or appetizers might be a good way of drawing a crowd on game day as well. Spirits and beer are more profitable than food, so if done correctly, this play could mean big points for your business. Also, consider salty foods that will make patrons go for that thirst-quenching beer more often.
Finally, it might be a good idea to offer a bonus to fans in a team makes it to the playoffs. Offer a ticket at the beginning of the season, with a reward of a free meal or drink if a patron goes to your bar for every game. This could build a loyal customer base for the season and beyond.
NCB
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