Jerseys are a big deal.

For decades, professional sports teams have taken to altering their uniform styles and designs in order to keep up-to-date with the latest fashion crazes, usher in new eras, and, of course, boost merchandise sales.  With the constant updates made to team uniforms, major sportswear companies and fashion designers have been all too happy to enter into partnerships with teams, recognizing that jerseys are some of the priciest billboard real estate around.

The revamping of team kits is not just exclusive to professional sports; the Varsity Blues are getting a new look after entering into a three-year partnership with Prime Time — representing the sports apparel-manufacturing giant, Adidas.

According to Beth Ali, director of Intercollegiate and High Performance Sport at U of T, twelve distributors submitted bids in response to a request for a proposal of a preferred supplier of athletic uniforms and off-field apparel was issued earlier this year. Prime Time was the successful bidder. This follows a three-year agreement with Russell Athletics.

While Ali notes that it is simply too early to estimate a dollar value for the new purchasing agreement, she explains that it will be based on preferred pricing coupled with a rebate program based on volume. “The more purchasing we do, the greater our rebates will be. The previous purchasing agreement [with Russell Athletics] did not include rebates or ‘in kind’ product to the intercollegiate program. This new agreement does, which allows us to better manage costs for uniforms and clothing,” she said.

Earlier this year, Adidas found itself embroiled in controversy after numerous high-profile schools — including Rutgers, Northwestern, William and Mary, Cornell, and Penn State — either terminated or suspended their contracts with the apparel manufacturer. The decisions were made following the release of a report by the Worker Rights Consortium, which claimed that Adidas failed to pay $1.8 million in legally mandated severance to 2,800 workers of the PT Kizone factory in Indonesia. The factory also had contracts for the manufacturing of goods with Nike and the Dallas Cowboys, both of which paid the workers partial severance. Although Adidas initially maintained that it owed nothing to the factory, PT Kizone eventually announced that its former employees would “receive a substantial sum from Adidas.”

The Blues in uniform after a Vanier Cup-triumph. PHOTO COURTESY VARSITY BLUES

Ali explains that U of T became aware of the Worker Rights Consortium report at the end of the request for proposal process, at which point it decided to put the ordering of uniforms and clothing on hold. “Only once Adidas
Corporate finalized its response to the Worker Rights Consortium to the satisfaction of both parties did we begin to order uniforms and clothing,” she said.

College athletics have emerged as lucrative marketing opportunities for major sportswear companies, especially south of the border. In 2008, for instance, the University of Maryland Terrapins signed a gargantuan five-year deal with Under Armour, worth a reported $17.5 million.

While the market for apparel at Canadian universities is nowhere near as colossal as that in the United States, Ali believes that U of T “will do well partnering with Adidas on price point. We could gain a financial advantage if students, staff, and friends of the University of Toronto support us by purchasing Adidas apparel over the length of the contract.”

The new apparel will be available for purchase later this fall at the University of
Toronto Bookstore and at basketball games. There will also be various items on sale when U of T hosts the women’s soccer and swimming Canadian Interuniversity Sport championships.