FC Barcelona launches its own official e-commerce channel for the sale of products from the Barça Store at Camp Nou
FC Barcelona has taken a new step forward in its commercial and digital strategy with the launch of the Barça Store at the Camp Nou's own official e-commerce channel that fans will be able to use to purchase different branded products and 100% exclusive collections that are only available at points of sale managed directly by the club. This launch is part of the club's commitment to expanding its retail business.
In the first phase, the new online store will be open from today, May 7, for sales throughout Spain. The plan is to gradually expand to the different countries of the European Economic Area, as well as the United Kingdom and Switzerland, in the coming months.
Barça fans will therefore get to feel closer to the club, by being able to have Barça products sent to their homes, no matter where they are physically. In addition to official football and other sports kits, they will also be able to order clothing collections and exclusive accessories, including the 'Gallina de piel' collection in homage to Johan Cruyff that until now could only be purchased in person at the Camp Nou Barça Store. There are also plenty of options for children and women, as well as limited and exclusive editions that were previously available in the official Barça Stores.
Customers will also be able to personalize their shirts with lettering in Barça's own font, FC Barcelona Play, as worn on the backs of all professional sports players, including the football team in friendly, Copa del Rey and Champions League matches, and a special edition of the Champions League shirt that is only available at points of sale managed by the club.
A new step in the digital transformation of the club and its plans to gain control over retail
The launch of the e-commerce section of the Barça Store at the Camp Nou is part of the club's strategy since 2018 of regaining control over its merchandising and retail rights, previously in the hands of FCB–Merchandising, a company 100% owned by Nike. Since then, FC Barcelona has directly taken over the management and operation of the business, creating the company Barça Licensing & Merchandising (BLM), with the aim of being able to directly control the more than 7,000 internationally licensed official products and thus consolidate its global expansion.
The strategy includes, in addition to this online launch, the creation of a network of official points of sale managed entirely by FC Barcelona, currently at six establishments: the stores at the Camp Nou, Canaletes, Passeig de Gràcia, La Roca Village, Terminal 2 at Barcelona Airport that opened just over a year ago, and another in Terminal 1 to which Barça was recently awarded the rights for the next five years.
The new online sales channel is also one of the key elements of Barça’s new integrated ecosystem of digital products and services, launched as part of its commitment to a paradigm shift in its digital strategy. A new strategy with a Fan-Centric approach, with which the club is hoping to get even closer to all of its fans around the world, in consideration of how although Barça currently has some 350 million fans on social networks, only 4 million a year get the chance to visit the Camp Nou, the Barça Experience and the Museum or Barça Stores. The vast majority will never visit the city of Barcelona at all.
Statement by Oriol Tomàs, Vice President of the FC Barcelona Commercial Area
“The launch of the new official e-commerce channel at the Barça Store Camp Nou is a very important milestone for FC Barcelona, as it means a new step forward towards its goal of expanding and internationalizing its retail business, which already involves its own network of six physical points of sale.
Barça created BLM with the aim of managing its retail business, and from there it was possible to start working on plans for an online sales channel that is now becoming a reality. Having a new direct sales channel is a key factor for Barça, for as many fans as possible can now purchase these products, creating a new source of revenue and hence greater profitability, which will help Barça to carry on being a benchmark in an increasingly more competitive environment”.
Statement by Dídac Lee, director responsible for the FC Barcelona Digital Area
“The launch of the e-commerce service at Barça Store Camp Nou is one of the essential pieces in the new ecosystem of digital services and projects that FC Barcelona is developing within its digital strategy. It is one of the cornerstones of this unique ecosystem that we are sure will be an increasingly more important part of the Club and is one of a series of projects that Barça is working on, and that we are sure are here to stay for the coming years, and will be developed and adapted to different future contexts.
This new platform also helps the club get closer to its fans no matter where they are physically, as they will now have access to a broad catalogue of 100% Barça products. This direct sales channel is also a new form of contact with our fans that will help us get to know them better and understand their tastes and preferences”.
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