Chicago area sports retailers are getting a big boost from the Bears’ winning streak as the team gears up for playoffs.
At Clark Street Sports’ eight stores across the Chicago area, sales of Bears merchandise have jumped 41% compared to last year, co-owner Jason Caref said.
It’s hard to know if the sales were due to strong Christmas shopping, Caref said. But there’s been an undeniable surge, especially since the Bears’ improbable comeback victory against the Green Bay Packers last week. The team is headed to the playoffs for the first time since January 2021.
The Bears’ winning streak is a “huge boost to our business. Christmas came early for our company this year,” Caref said.
Online and in-store sales at Clark Street Sports have been strong in recent weeks. It’s even been hard to find a parking spot at its busiest store in Albany Park, 4506 W. Lawrence Ave. Store manager Fatima Reynoso said this past week has been the busiest she’s seen during her four years working at the shop.
On Friday, Camilo Cumpian was there to buy a Bears hat for his 11-year-old son, Orlando. The hat is a tribute to Super Bowl XX, which the Bears won in 1986.
“If we’re lucky, history will repeat itself,” Cumpian said. He remembers watching the game as a kid. “It’s something I’ll never forget.” Cumpian hopes his son will have a similar experience, if the Bears continue to win.
Wrigleyville Sports, at 959 W. Addison St., has also seen strong demand for Bears merchandise. “Sales have been crazy,” Devin Carlstrom, Wrigleyville Sports’ general manager, said. Bears gear “was on everyone’s Christmas list.”
“People have been ordering online as well as coming into the store for last-minute gifts,” he said. “On Bears game days, customers have been coming in to buy team merchandise.”
“Good, Better, Best” T-shirts and sweatshirts, referencing coach Ben Johnson’s familiar post-game slogan, have also been popular at the Wrigleyville store. “Anything with the Bears,” Carlstrom said.
The Bears’ wins have given a welcome boost to small businesses, including card and sports memorabilia stores, that have weathered a litany of challenges this year, including inflation and tariffs. Chicago sports retailers have also faced the challenge of selling gear of struggling hometown teams.
“It’s a challenge to buy merch for teams that are not performing well,” Caref said.
But this was a turnaround year, first with the Cubs making it to the National League Division Series this fall and now the Bears’ banner season.
Addam Haynes, of Jefferson Park, was at Clark Street Sports to buy more Bears T-shirts even though he got team merchandise for Christmas. He was thrilled when the team won last weekend.
“You’re always nervous when you’re a Bears fan,” Haynes said. Now that the team is winning, “it’s exciting to wear their clothes,” he added. “The whole city is behind them. It doesn’t matter who you are.”
Mayfair resident Xiomara DeLeon was at the store to exchange a Bears sweatshirt. She was excited but not surprised by the team’s win last weekend. “I have faith,” she said.
At Clark Street Sports, jerseys of star rookies such as running back Kyle Monangai and tight end Colston Loveland have been particularly hot. Monangai jerseys, selling for $130 and $175, sold out within 48 hours, Caref said. Orange jerseys have been selling well too.
Merchandise with “Good, Better, Best” have been bestsellers, Caref added. “We can’t keep it in stock. As soon as we get it in, it’s gone.”
With a cold snap blasting Chicago around Thanksgiving, Bears-branded winter hats, gloves, scarves, blankets and face masks have also been popular at Clark Street Sports.
Clarks Street Sports has new merchandise declaring the Bears division champions ready to go, but they can’t sell it unless the team wins in the regular season. But Caref is optimistic. “As soon as they win, we can sell it.”
Wes Nunez has worked as an associate at Clark Street Sports for eight months and noted the pride in fans coming to the store. As a “huge Bears fan,” Nunez has been having in-depth conversations with enthusiastic customers about coaching and strategy.
The team has been dysfunctional for so long, but “now we can see this is going right. It’s long awaited, to say the least,” he said.
When Nunez was out at bars after last weekend’s game, the atmosphere “was electric. Everyone was grinning from ear to ear.”
Football is more than a game, Nunez said. “It brings the community together. Everyone is proud to be a Chicagoan now.”