Play It Again Sam Sporting Goods Stockton Ca

When Marker Zimmerman looked into buying Sarasota's Play It Again Sports, he knew it was a chain of sporting goods stores specializing in selling used and new sporting equipment.

What the 61-yr-sometime native of New Rochelle, New York, was unfamiliar with was the origin of the name.

Play It Again Sports. Play it again, Sam, a misquotation of the line "Play information technology, Sam" from the movie "Casablanca."

Zimmerman's independently owned shop isn't exactly a gym joint, merely considering of COVID-19, many gym patrons have turned to him for aid.

And sales at Play It Over again Sports have reflected this need.

"For the year, I'one thousand up double-digits," Zimmerman said. "I'thou bitterly sweet about how skillful the business organisation is due to the pandemic. Just that doesn't hateful I want this pandemic to go along. I want to be normal, too."

For area sports enthusiasts in demand of stuff, there's Dick'due south Sporting Goods, the nation'southward largest sporting goods retailer with approximately 850 stores and thirty,000 employees, and Play Information technology Again Sports, started in 1983 in Minneapolis and now with more than 450 stores in the The states and Canada.

Zimmerman was on the back end of a 37-year career as a district managing director for CVS Chemist's shop in the New York, New Jersey and Connecticut area. Simply the company reorganized in 2017, a shuffle which greatly increased his work load.

"More work for the same pay," Zimmerman said. CVS eventually severanced him and the move caught him by surprise. "I would have retired with them."

But with three children in college and non nonetheless ready to sit at home, Zimmerman looked into buying into a variety of businesses. His love of sports zeroed in the former high school baseball role player and track star in 2018 on the Play Information technology Again Sports franchise for auction in Sarasota.

Zimmerman visited a couple of stores, one being the Sarasota location, which had seen its sales tumble. The owner operated 26 other Play It Once more Sports franchises around Florida, only hadn't been in his Sarasota location in ten years.

"I knew it wasn't very profitable," Zimmerman said. Yet, he saw the potential in information technology, and afterward getting blessing from the Winmark Corporaton, the franchiser of Play It Once again Sports, Zimmerman forked over about $200,000. The Sarasota location was his.

"I was nervously excited," he said. He renovated the store, but without much available inventory, Zimmerman began listening to the requests of his customers.

Then he started selling discs for disc golf. Zimmerman brought in more bikes and more than fitness equipment. He got the necessary infinite by ridding the store of cumbersome hockey equipment.

But 6 months after Zimmerman took over, Dick'south opened a shop at The Mall at University Town Centre. And for the first calendar month at Play It Again Sports, sales tanked.

"I was like, 'Oh, my God. What's going on here?' " Zimmerman said. "But afterwards a month and a half, it started going support again and it hasn't stopped."

That's because COVID-xix has been good for Zimmerman'south business. Bike sales are up more than 100 percent. He's operating with a ratio of 60 percent new gear and 40 pct used due to no i coming in with their used equipment.

In March, when surface area gyms shut down, fitness junkies descended upon Zimmerman's store for equipment. "There are fitness junkies out there like you can't believe," he said.

Sales of dumbbells, benches, weight bars and plate weights exploded. People came to Zimmerman for inline skates, bikes and golf equipment. "It made upward for the other stuff I was not selling."

He was forced to close in April, but since reopening on May 3, Zimmerman hasn't been complaining, relieve for one thing.

His vendors can't get him the equipment fast enough. Zimmerman ordered 27,000 pounds of weights. Ten weeks later, he got only viii,500.

"And I tin can't tell the client when he can get it," he said. As a issue, Zimmerman will post on Facebook when an order of equipment arrives.

"And then it'southward first come up, showtime served," he said. "I wish I had carte blanche to be able to get whatever I wanted, when I wanted it."

Someday the virus will pass. But Zimmerman thinks the auction of certain equipment won't as function of the mail-COVID-19 world.

"I remember, quite bluntly, (it will last) until the end of time. I don't think it will stop."

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Source: https://www.heraldtribune.com/story/sports/2020/08/10/covid-19-sarasota-play-it-again-sports/3332346001/

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