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PHOENIX � Since 2020, several Arizona professional sports teams have introduced some form of new uniforms.

The Cardinals revamped their look for the first time since 2005, the Suns encompassed the spirit of the 1995 NBA All-Star Game in their City Edition uniforms, and in May the Diamondbacks revealed the second rendition of their vibrant City Connect jerseys.

But in a time where Arizona’s sports fashion seems to be at its hottest, some aficionados think the sports apparel industry in the Valley is hanging by a thread.

“I think the product (local teams) put out is a very cheap product and that’s regarding everything they seem to touch: hats, T-shirts and jerseys,� said Zach Meyer, an Arizona sports fan and memorabilia collector.

In 2011, the sports memorabilia company Fanatics was founded by Michael Rubin. In the past 14 years, the company has grown from just a merchandise website to a power in the sports business, becoming the official outfitter for professional leagues including MLB and the NHL.

While Fanatics apparel has increased in quantity year over year, some fans take exception to the direction the company has taken.

“Before the whole Fanatics invasion I never really had any (issues), everything was affordable and all the stuff I bought before has all held up well since,� Meyer said. “Six years ago, even up to maybe three years ago, you could buy a stitched jersey for around $150. Now they’re $300 or more, and I think that’s unfair.�

Fanatics did not respond to a request for comment.

Fanatics and Nike are coming off a rocky 2024 MLB season, with miscommunication between the brands creating low-quality jerseys that blew up on social media and generated complaints from players.

But Fanatics� production errors and hiking of prices has not slowed down business, with the company’s growth coinciding with the massive development experienced overall by online shopping. In 2024, Fanatics reported over $8.1 million in revenue for the year.

But as Fanatics and similar online-heavy corporations grow bigger and bigger, the small businesses in the market dwindle, including here in the Valley.

“Back when I started things, believe it or not, in the first year of the store, in 1992, there were 14 stores within a two-mile radius that either sold all ASU gear, or at least dabbled in ASU gear,� said Tony Scoma, who owns Cactus Sports in Tempe.

“And now there’s (just) me.�

Cactus Sports, located on bustling Mill Avenue, has been open for 33 years. While all of the store’s former competitors have closed shop or been bought out by major out-of-state corporations, Cactus Sports remains as the lone store still run by locals.

“You think you’re helping the university by buying at the bookstore,� Scoma said. “But ironically, the university bookstore and all the stadium shops are run by a giant corporation out of Chicago, and I don’t know that a lot of people know that.�

Sun Devil Campus Stores is managed by Follett Higher Education Group, a corporation that has been running the stores since 2011. More than 1,000 campuses partner with Follett, which is quite the opposite of a local scope.

These contractors not only keep revenue away from the Arizona economy and small businesses, but Scoma says the “copy and paste� merchandise of non-local companies lack true team spirit.

“You get a buyer from Follett in Chicago who knows nothing about ASU.� Scoma said. “They know we have a Sparky (the ASU mascot), they know we have a pitchfork and they don’t know much else. I feel like you go to the bookstore, and it’s just so vanilla.�

With customers upset and local businesses shuttering, the current state of the market has forced sports fans to pivot to different avenues. One of the most popular options can be found through thrift stores and second-hand markets.

Approximately one-third of clothing and apparel purchased in the U.S. over the past year was secondhand, according to a Capital One Shopping report.

“Sports goes hand-in-hand with all this (vintage) stuff,� said Grant Berg, who owns Heat Connect AZ, a vintage clothing store in Gilbert. “We carry a lot of sports items, honestly, more than I ever planned to just because a lot of people bring in the demand.�

Berg’s Heat Connect storefront is anything but a “copy and paste� experience. From using Pokémon cards as the price tags on shirts to old Michael Jordan “Wheaties� Boxes lining the walls, Heat Connect shows off the character that current retailers are missing.

“The Starter jackets, shark tooth hats, the cool vintage kind of stuff,� Berg said. “People are always into sports. A lot of people wear (sports) hats that aren’t even into sports. It’s an interesting market, but people will always be into sports.�

Berg says sports apparel is a major player in the secondhand space due to the nature of the production of items. Team promotions, such as free T-shirts and jerseys, find their way into thrift stores, with a high interest in items from earlier decades like the 1990s.

But even with high demand, consumers can only find most of these thrift and vintage items on digital storefronts. In Capital One’s study, 93% of Americans shop online for secondhand items each year, while only 16-18% shop secondhand in-store.

“You don’t really see too many of the sports-specific stores, like back in the malls, kind of like back in the early 2000s,� Berg said. “And the ones that do exist, they kind of just sell a little bit of garbage.�

Another option among secondhand apparel is buying from a third party. Many Arizona sports fans head to non-authorized sellers� websites just to get some form of apparel to rep their team. Fans can find bootleg jerseys dawning the names of Arizona stars like Devin Booker, Kyler Murray, Corbin Carroll and� Zavada?

“I could not find any. I mean, he’s the kicker, so that jersey isn’t everywhere,� said Sam Winters. “I’ve never ordered from the off-hand websites. I’ve heard of some through TikTok, to be honest. But it was actually ridiculously easy. I looked up Michigan jerseys, and I customized his name and number.�

Winters, an ASU student and native of Tempe, wanted to represent his hometown friend, Dominic Zavada. Zavada, who graduated from Valley Christian High School in Chandler, is the kicker for the University of Michigan’s football team.

“It was like 15 dollars. I was honestly expecting the worst, but it is actually not a bad jersey,� Winters said. “Real authentic Michigan jerseys are, like, $150 or $160, and I would never pay that.�

Zavada might have missed out on some NIL dollars from his buddy (sorry, Dom), but Winters saved a lot of money by using a third party for the purchase, which is the top reason many fans opt to stray away from the real stuff.

In a survey within a soccer article from The Athletic, 78% of respondents said they have bought a fake soccer jersey, with 66% of them happy to stick with the fakes.

“I can only speak for myself, but whenever I’m walking around a stadium and I see a fake jersey, it’s immediate to me,� baseball influencer Cameron Guzzo said. “I’m not a fan, but I wouldn’t say it’s bad for the sport, because it makes representing your team in the league more accessible to people, especially in this day and age.�

Guzzo runs an Instagram account with over 100,000 followers, covering all things baseball from new jerseys to ballparks. Guzzo also has a secondary account where he designs his own jerseys and an online store where he sells his own designs.

While Fanatics and Nike have run into various problems since their takeover, Guzzo still believes there are positives to take away, including Nike’s “City Connect� jerseys that were introduced during the 2021 MLB season.

“They’re trying to address the younger demographic with the City Connects,� Guzzo said. “You’re going to have your misses, but for the most part, I feel like there’s been some really cool designs that have come out of it.�

The Diamondbacks introduced their “Serpientes� look in 2021 to much praise from fans, followed by the much-beloved City Connects second rendition this season. Even with hiccups in Fanatics and Nike’s first few years of MLB jersey production, the launch of City Connects generated an estimated $1.7 million in social value across MLB social media accounts.

While Guzzo is a fan of Nike’s designs, he does agree with the fan consensus that there are many problems left to be solved.

“Fanatics is a big player with Nike and controls just about everything. I do think that allows them to get away with lower tier quality,� Guzzo said. “And that’s not just opinion based, it’s pretty objective. You see all the different things posted from people that are getting misprints and mistakes. So it is, especially for me, the people who love uniforms and jerseys and stuff like that. It is a shame.�

Despite concerns from the “fanatics� of the sports world, there are no signs of slowing down for big corporations in the sports apparel industry.

“I don’t want to really name names to get quoted, but they’re (big corporations) kind of known in the industry, as the devil,� Scoma said. “I’m just glad that I’m one of the few independents that are still left.�