KANSAS CITY, Mo. — With thousands of football fans coming into town for the NFL Draft, what better way to remember their time than with some swag?
Rally House on the Country Club Plaza has pint glasses, lanyards, hats, T-shirts, koozies and footballs — all draft branded.
"We’re getting a little bit more inventory of draft merchandise, draft apparel, the cups, the tumblers, the sweatshirts, little bit larger than we normally would because we are hosting it," said Aaron Lewis, Plaza store manager. "The way I look at it, you have 32 teams in the NFL, you have 31 other fans coming to Kansas City for the draft.
"So, yes, some people buy Kansas City stuff because they come to Kansas City, but they’re coming for the draft merchandise, to be a part of the draft, to be a part of history."
Rally House started receiving merchandise over a week ago and expects more every day leading up to the big event.
"We’re preparing the best we can," Lewis said. "We’ll be staffed, ready to go. Obviously, we’re expecting larger numbers, larger crowds, especially down here on the Plaza."
Anticipating selling out of inventory, Lewis says he's already seeing hats and cups flying off shelves, mostly purchased by locals. He's also received calls from folks out of state coming to Kansas City who want to make sure they can bring home commemorative gear.
"I think it’s a monumental thing, not just for Rally House as a business but for Kansas City alone," Lewis said. "Kansas City’s already been on the map, we’ve won a couple Super Bowls, but this will be a true test for the World Cup coming to see how Kansas City compares for a stage this big."
The Rally Houses in Kansas City are the only shops with draft merch, even though there are over 100 shops across the United States.
