Contact(s)
For more information, contact:
Kerry Hassen, Corporate Communications
Delaware North Companies
(716) 858-5016
khassen@dncinc.com
Jane Lehman
Executive Director, Corporate Communications
Time Inc.
(212) 522-0597
jane_lehman@timeinc.com
Store at Detroit Metro Airport's New North Terminal will carry SI-branded consumer products and apparel, as well as popular merchandise featuring the local professional and college teams
DETROIT, MI (September 16, 2008) - The SPORTS ILLUSTRATED GROUP and Delaware North Companies today announced that the first SI retail store will open in the newly constructed North Terminal of the Detroit Metro Airport on September 17.
The new SI store will feature an array of SI branded consumer products (apparel, books, calendars, DVDs) as well as branded merchandise of the area's professional (Red Wings, Tigers, Pistons, Lions) and college (Michigan State University and the University of Michigan) teams.
"We constantly strive to create new, exciting ways for sports fans to engage and interact with our content and our brand," says Andrew Judelson, SPORTS ILLUSTRATED GROUP CMO. "The new SI retail store is another example of our innovation strategy and it makes perfect sense for us to open in Detroit, one of the most passionate sports towns in America."
In addition to consumer products, the store will feature interactive kiosks where fans can access the latest sports news at SI.COM and visit SI VAULT, the recently-launched online archive containing over 150,000 stories, 2,800 covers and more than 500,000 photographs from SI's 54-year history. THE DAN PATRICK RADIO SHOW will air in the store throughout the day as well.
"We are extremely excited about our significant partnership with SPORTS ILLUSTRATED to create this innovative and unique retail concept centered on such a revered brand," said Matt King, president of Delaware North's Travel Hospitality Services division. "Delaware North is dedicated to bringing cutting-edge brands to travelers across the country. We're thrilled to bring this extraordinary concept to the Detroit Airport."
Delaware North is a global hospitality, food service and retail provider whose Travel Hospitality Services division develops and manages national and regional branded restaurants and retail locations at Detroit Metro Airport and 20 other major airports.
"We are both exited and proud to be the location of choice for SI to launch their first-ever retail store endeavor," said Wayne County Airport Authority CEO Lester Robinson. "What better testament to the power of airports to generate new business development in a community, than the desire and willingness for companies like SPORTS ILLUSTRATED to want to call our award-winning airport concession program home."
The store will bear the SI logo above the entrance and poster-sized Detroit themed SI covers at the main entrance. The covers - and SI imagery featured throughout the store - will feature current and iconic moments in Detroit sports history and will be maintained to reflect the current sports season. The 831 square feet of retail space will also include flat screen TVs airing local and national games.
In celebration of its opening, the SI store will give away Red Wings Commemoratives and the SI issue featuring the Stanley Cup Champions on the cover to over one thousand travelers on September 17.
About THE SPORTS ILLUSTRATED GROUP
SI is a multimedia sports brand that takes the consumer into the heart and soul of sports. The SI franchise is anchored by SPORTS ILLUSTRATED, the most respected voice in sports journalism which reaches a weekly audience of nearly 21 million adults, and www.SI.COM, the magazine's 24/7 sports news website that delivers more than 150 original stories to its users each week. The SI franchise also includes SPORTS ILLUSTRATED KIDS (www.sikids.com), a monthly magazine targeted to kids age 8 and up; GOLF MAGAZINE and www.GOLF.COM; www.FANNATION.COM, a social networking and sports news aggregation platform; www.SIONCAMPUS.COM, a website dedicated to college sports and the college sports lifestyle; SI PRESENTS the magazine's specialty publishing division; as well as SI BOOKS, SI PICTURES, SI PRODUCTIONS, SI DIGITAL and SI EVENTS. Founded in 1954, SI is a division of Time Inc., the world's leading magazine publishing company and a subsidiary of Time Warner.
About Detroit Metro Airport
Detroit Metropolitan Airport's award-winning concession program has impressed travelers and industry groups alike. The airport's McNamara Terminal was recently honored in the 2007 Airport Revenue News (ARN) Concession Poll as: Best Overall Concession Program, Best Concession Management Team, Best Concession Program Design, and Airport with the Most Unique Services. DTW also finished first place among large North American airports in the categories of Best Food & Beverage Program and Best Retail Specialty Program, in Airports Council International - North America's (ACI-NA) 2006 Excellence in Concessions Contest. When the North Terminal concession program opens in 2008, the airport will house more than 120 world-class shops and restaurants airport-wide, and will offer one of the largest and most diverse airport concession programs in the world.
Detroit Metro Airport's new $431-million North Terminal will be Detroit's home to Air Canada, American Airlines, AirTran Airways, Frontier Airlines, Lufthansa German Airlines, Royal Jordanian Airlines, Southwest Airlines, Spirit Airlines, United Airlines, US Airways, USA 3000, and charter airlines. Northwest Airlines and its SkyTeam partners AeroMéxico, Air France, Continental Airlines, Delta Air Lines and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, will remain in the McNamara Terminal.
The North Terminal Redevelopment Project is creating an estimated 3,200 new, local construction jobs. Upon completion of the new facility, the existing Smith and Berry terminals will be decommissioned, making DTW one of the newest, most operationally-capable and efficient airports in North America. Together with the McNamara Terminal, which opened in 2002, DTW will soon feature two new terminals, nearly 150 gates, six jet runways, and two modern Federal Inspection Services facilities for international arrivals.
Established in 2002 by the Michigan State Legislature, Wayne County Airport Authority is an independent agency responsible for the operation of DTW and Willow Run Airport (YIP). Serving nearly 36 million passengers last year, DTW is the largest airport in Michigan and among the busiest air transportation hubs in the world. DTW's 17 airlines offer more than 1,200 non-stop flights per day to more than 160 destinations worldwide.
About Delaware North Companies Travel Hospitality Services
Delaware North Companies Travel Hospitality Services, a subsidiary of Delaware North Companies, is one of the nation's leading airport food service and retail companies, operating 300 restaurants and retail outlets in more than 25 airports worldwide, and serving more than 350 million customers each year. The GuestPath® customer service training program ensures that all Delaware North Companies Travel Hospitality Services associates embody the company's vision of "Providing Care and Comfort to People Away from Home."
About Delaware North Companies
Delaware North Companies is one of the world's leading hospitality and food service providers. Its family of companies includes Delaware North Companies Parks & Resorts, Delaware North Companies Gaming & Entertainment, Delaware North Companies Travel Hospitality Services, Delaware North Companies Sportservice, Delaware North Companies International and Delaware North Companies Boston, owner of TD Banknorth Garden. Delaware North Companies is one of the largest privately held companies in the United States with revenues exceeding $2 billion annually and 40,000 associates serving half a billion customers in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand. For more information, visit www.DelawareNorth.com.