BEIJING: The National Basketball Association (NBA) has collaborated with Nike, its official on-court apparel provider and Topsports, a leading sports retailer in China for opening the league’s biggest retail outlet outside of North America and by far the largest in the Asian country.
The new store is located at the Intime Mall, Wangfujing in Beijing. It offers 1,145 square meters of retail space over two floors, with a wide variety of products including jerseys, footwear, NBA style apparel, headwear, kids apparel, collectibles, basketballs, accessories and memorabilia.
“Our largest NBA Store outside North America underscores the NBA’s long-standing commitment to serving our fans in China,” NBA China CEO Derek Chang stated.
“As the appetite for official NBA products continues to grow in China, this brand-new retail space will provide fans with authentic NBA gear and accessories, exclusive memorabilia and localized products that celebrate their passion for the NBA.”
“Our goal is to make the Beijing flagship NBA Store a landmark for NBA fans in Beijing by offering them the new retail experience and wide category of merchandise,” Topsports deputy GM Tian Zhong added.
“We will leverage our extensive retail experience to work closely with the NBA and Nike to provide a variety of products, good customer experience and membership service to all the NBA fans in China.”
The first floor of the Beijing flagship NBA Store is designed as a Nike Hoop Dreams space and includes sections for Nike Basketball and Jordan Brand, offering authentic Nike jerseys, swingman jerseys, team apparel, footwear and limited-edition products.
For the first time, fans in mainland China can customize jerseys from their favorite teams through ‘NBA ME’, an offline jersey personalization service at the Beijing flagship NBA Store. Located on the second floor, the NBA Hardwood Classics section is the largest of its kind in mainland China and offers a wide selection of Mitchell & Ness jerseys and vintage NBA apparel.
Fans will also find a line of authentic NBA headwear from New Era, including NBA Draft caps, team caps and championship caps throughout the season. A Spalding ball wall provides fans a variety of the brand’s basketball products including the league’s official game ball.
Meanwhile, NBA Style fashion apparel and caps on the second floor offer dynamic lifestyle apparel and accessories to both men and women. A wide selection of fan gear for kids can also be found in the NBA Kids area.
“The entire floor of Nike Basketball and Jordan Brand space is created to bring the most innovative basketball offerings and personalized service and experiences to NBA fans in China,” Nike Basketball China GM Ari Chen said.
“As the official partner of NBA on-court apparel and a long-term strategic partner of Topsports, we are happy to take our partnerships of developing the Chinese market to the next level and will continue to work together to unleash the passion and unlock the inspiration of basketball lovers in China.”
Fans can also find a graffiti wall inspired by local culture and various hyperlocal products available only in the store. A series of personalised T-shirts with designs reflecting the characteristics of Beijing, including traditional Beijing opera faces, local food and the city’s skyline, are available in the customization area.
The exterior of the Beijing flagship NBA Store features a giant NBA Logoman with its iconic red, white and blue silhouette that can be easily seen from Wangfujing Avenue. The interior of the store is inspired by authentic NBA arenas, with a hardwood floor, player graphics with actual body measurements, a gallery of autographed game-used jerseys, and a ‘jumbotron’ that enables shoppers to view NBA content and game highlights.
A ‘Wall of Fame’ on the second floor also allows NBA players and legends who visit the store to leave their autographs and best wishes to Chinese fans.
