Villa blow final whistle for city centre club shop after revamp
ASTON Villa have closed down their city centre club shop and ticket office to focus on the stadium store.
The club recently upgraded and relaunched the Villa Village store at Villa Park and said the closure of the shop in New Street was part of restructuring plans for its retail operations.
It said the move would allow the club to “review and further enhance the retail offering going forward”.
A brief statement added: “The club would like to thank its supporters for their custom and support and look forward to welcoming them to the Villa Village store.”
Aston Villa also recently signed a retail partnership with Fanatics, one of the world’s largest retailers of licensed sports merchandise.
Fanatics, which is now the club’s official retail partner, is an e-commerce, merchandise and retail specialist which also works with football clubs such as Chelsea, Manchester United and Real Madrid.
Villa’s chief commercial officer Luke Organ said: “We are proud to be working with such a strong and renowned partner in retail as Fanatics. Our retail offering is an important part of the club and we had to ensure we have the right support in place to drive this forward.
“Naturally, we have reviewed our operation and can see a number of opportunities and areas to explore and change respectively over the coming months and years while ensuring we deliver the best fan retail experience we can. With Fanatics’ help we are confident our retail offering will grow and expand to new levels.”
Andy Anson, Fanatics’ international president, added: “We’re delighted to be working with Aston Villa and look forward to playing our part in strengthening their retail offering for the benefit of Villa fans, both at home and abroad.”