There’s another player in the crowded field aiming to outfit Colorado’s fitness-conscious population.
Sports Authority last week quietly opened the doors of S.A. Elite at Cherry Creek Shopping Center — the parent company’s first small-store concept featuring high-performance and high-style men’s and women’s merchandise from an assortment of top athletic and outdoor brands of clothing, shoes and accessories. The store will target runners, yoga enthusiasts, tennis players, snow-sports fans and cyclists.
“People want to be fit and look fit,” says Greg Waters, executive vice president in charge of store operations for Sports Authority, which has 462 locations.
What sets the gear apart — and ties into the “Elite” concept — is the store’s strategy to serve people who are affluent and active and who want better service than they might find in a big-box store.
While hardly small by overall retail standards, the 15,000-square-foot store (in what was a Chevy’s restaurant) is about a third of the size of a typical Sports Authority location. The shop is laid out by brand and sport, so customers can browse in “boutiques” for merchandise by North Face, Mountain Hardwear, Columbia, Burton, Under Armour and Nike, among others. And the areas aren’t segregated by gender, so both men’s and women’s styles are in the same department. Across the store’s back wall is a wide assortment of athletic and lifestyle footwear from such brands as Nike, Merrell, Ugg and Columbia.
Tennis fans will find Nike styles worn by such athletes as Maria Sharapova (Control Court Dress, $110), Serena Williams (Control Court Dress, $90) and Roger Federer (gold-logo practice T-shirt in organic cotton, $40)
The store’s main focus is clothing and shoes, but it also sells tennis rackets (and it strings them on site) and has a fitness shop with yoga mats, resistance bands, balls and other gear.
While some of the featured brands are found at other stores, many of the styles are exclusive in this market to S.A. Elite, according to Jeff Schumacher, executive vice president and chief marketing officer for Sports Authority, based in Englewood. “We will expect them to come here first to see it,” he says.
He says the company hopes to eventually open hundreds of S.A. Elite stores in the next several years, but it will start modestly, with a second one opening in Highlands Ranch in November. Geared to the suburban audience, that store will also have clothing for children.
Suzanne S. Brown: 303-954-1697 or sbrown@denverpost.com
Elite on its feet for fit-minded
S.A. Elite’s grand opening at Cherry Creek Shopping Center is at 10 a.m. Saturday. The store is across from Johnny Rockets, located at the east end of the lower level. Customers get a Nalgene bottle with any purchase, can see a yoga demonstrations and can meet with brand representatives.
