Heelys Sold Out in Sports Authority?

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stlplace
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I went to the SA store at Brentwood, and I saw they emptied half of the shelf which was originally for Heelys (they put on some Under Armour socks instead). Is that a sign they are sold out? I don’t know. But one thing I do know SA usually have all the available shoes on the shelf, in other words, a customer can try the shoes without asking help from the associates. This is opposite to specialty stores such as Journeys: in Journeys a customer would tell the size he/she wants, and the associates will go back to the warehouse and bring up the shoes. I guess that’s one reason Journeys’ shoes are fully priced.

There are some negative comments on Heelys, both the shoes and the stock. Barron had this article on the weekend paper. It mentioned two things: Heelys is not only faddish but aimed at a notoriously fickle customer (kids); there is also product-liability risk (kids got hurt when skating on Heelys). While these are both legitimate concerns, here is a parent’s comment I saw from fatwallet “Kids crack their heads riding bikes, skateboards, and scooters. Kids crack their heads on the playground. Heelys get your kids to turn off the TV and be active and there are health benefits to that.”

While the stock could take a hit from the Barron article, I believe ultimately it’s the sales and profit number that will matter. Interestingly, when I was about to leave the SA store, I saw a guy bought not one, but two Heelys shoes for his kids. Maybe they are really sold out?

PS, eBay number

17Dec06 1192 134
18Dec06 1032 156
19Dec06 982 84
Note the number is declining these days, which is understandable considering we are approaching Dec 25. People need to buy it in advance and get it shipped, in order to receive it by Christmas.

(Update 20Dec06) I went to the SA Bridgeton Store during lunch break and happened to see an old couple bought a pair.

(Update 21Dec06) Finanlly I saw some kids “heeling” in the mall, that was West County Mall. Dick’s Sporting Good does not have many Heelys left. Note West County have 4 stores carry Heelys: Nordstrom, Dick’s, Journeys, and FinishLine. There are plenty left at the SA store Manchester Road though.

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