Is it everything you ever dreamed of in a hockey store?
Yes, it is.
Thousands upon thousands of sticks. Every size and brand of every skate you’ve ever thought about wearing. Gloves, pants, jerseys. Protective. Goalie. An incredible selection of everything hockey related. And only hockey related.
Plus a “RapidShot” shooting gallery to test your prowess as a sniper. Big screens all around playing a continuous stream of Hockey’s greatest moments.
Yes, you can get everything you want here. But even if you don’t buy anything, it’s a great experience.
And the phenomenon continues to roll out across the country.
We’re talking about Pro Hockey Life, the Quebec-based retailer that is shaking up the hockey retailing world with megastores that combine a fun environment and massive selection to create a new ‘shoppertainment’ experience.
With the first four western stores opening this month in Calgary and Edmonton, and the seventh Ontario store cutting the ribbon this past week in Whitby, Pro Hockey Life is really on a roll.
It’s all part of a carefully orchestrated plan to bring a new experience and level of service to the Canadian hockey community.
It’s clear the company is driven by a passion for the sport, something company president Scott Jackson emphasizes.
“Everyone in the organization is motivated by a real passion for the sport. When you walk into a Pro Hockey Life megastore, you’ll be greeted by true hockey specialists.”
It’s pretty clear the hockey-centric big box concept is a big hit with consumers.
“One of my favourite things to do during grand openings is to walk around and listen to the comments from customers experiencing our megastores for the first time,” states Anthony Fisher, senior vice-president, marketing.
“Comments like ‘this is the best store I’ve ever seen,’ ‘ I can’t believe this place’, ‘I want to come back,’ ‘they’ve got everything,’ ‘it’s so amazing.’ This is 100% uncorrupted feedback coming from 12 to 14 year olds as they take in the Pro Hockey Life experience.”
And to top it off, Pro Hockey Life can offer you something no one else can: they are the exclusive retailer of the Alex Ovechkin CCM line of apparel, skates, sticks and protective gear.
“It’s all got the Ovie design touch – with some fun and exciting colours and all the features and quality a player of that caliber would demand,” says Fisher.
Not a bad connection – hooking up with the man almost everyone agrees is the most exciting guy in pro hockey at the moment.
Then again, after opening 11 new stores in just 18 months, it should be no surprise that Pro Hockey Life and Alex are hitting it off.
So where will you see the next Pro Hockey Life? Company officials are keeping that under wraps. But you can bet, it won’t be long til there’s one near you.
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