Fanatics Merchandising Chief Targets Speed and Women's Growth

Fanatics Commerce, the merchandising arm of the licensed sports platform, will exceed $7 billion in sales this year, and its chief merchandising officer, former Macy's executive Sam Archibald, is betting that speed to market and a doubling of the women's business will drive the next stage of growth. Parent company Fanatics is on pace to reach $14 billion in sales this year, with a stated goal of $50 billion in annual revenue over the next five to 10 years.

Archibald joined Fanatics Commerce a little less than two years ago after roughly 16 years at Macy's in two stints, most recently as senior vice president and general manager of apparel overseeing men's, women's and children's. He left once to lead the Calvin Klein direct-to-consumer business, then returned post-pandemic to help reset the department store's apparel offer. It took Fanatics founder and CEO Michael Rubin more than six months to persuade him to move.

"I was not looking for a job and I didn't know Michael at all," Archibald said. "But when I looked at Fanatics, I saw that sports was a growing business where my skill set could be additive to the organization. It was difficult to leave Macy's because I love the company. There are wonderful people there and they have a great business, but it was just time."

How fast is the licensed sports model?

Founded in 2011 as an e-commerce seller of licensed sports merchandise, Fanatics now holds partnerships with more than 900 sports properties, operates more than 2,000 retail locations including all Lids stores, is the majority owner of Mitchell & Ness and runs collectibles, betting and gaming divisions.

The operational difference from traditional retail is velocity. Where department store buyers predict trends six to 18 months out, Fanatics reacts within hours of major sports events.

"Twenty percent of our weekly volume is done in products that have been launched within 14 days," Archibald said. "We drop 400-plus programs a year, which means we're dropping something almost every day. We have 500-plus brands that we do business with and work with more than 1,200 teams."

When LeBron James announced his move from the Los Angeles Lakers to the Philadelphia 76ers, Fanatics had jerseys and a full apparel assortment live within an hour. Archibald said it was the best sales performance for a player joining a new team in company history, exceeding Shohei Ohtani's move to the Dodgers. The company keeps blank garments ready for on-demand printing; in the past, assortments were produced for both potential champions and the loser's merchandise was discarded.

The scale of the portfolio varies sharply. Archibald said the business spans NFL product with multimillion-dollar volume down to a small school with total sales of just $6,000.

What is the collaboration strategy?

Archibald's mantra is "more new, more often." Fanatics has launched collaborations with Tuckernuck for the NFL; Lululemon across the NFL, NHL, MLB and MLS; Abercrombie & Fitch for the NFL; and LoveShackFancy for collegiate apparel.

"Ninety percent of our customers for LoveShackFancy were new — 50 percent of our customers were new on Abercrombie," he said. "So we're serving our fans and also growing the marketplace by delivering more new, more often."

The NHL Hometown Remix program, special-edition uniforms for all 32 teams designed and developed by Fanatics, launches for the 2026-27 season. Fanatics makes both player uniforms and fan apparel for the NHL. Nike makes uniforms for the NFL and MLB while Fanatics produces adult fan gear; for the NBA, Nike makes both player and fan apparel, which Fanatics sells. For colleges, Fanatics runs e-commerce for almost 100 teams and partners with Barnes & Noble for another couple hundred. Brands with direct league deals, such as New Era, are bought wholesale by Fanatics buyers — "no different than a retailer like Nordstrom or Bloomingdale's or Macy's," Archibald said.

Why is women's apparel a priority?

Archibald has been tasked with more than doubling the women's business within the next few years and said the company is ahead of schedule. Women's apparel has been "an underserved category of business in sports licensing across the industry. Obviously, given my background, when I came into the business, I was shocked," he said.

The plan includes updated silhouettes — "Unisex fits are wonderful, but women don't want that" — focused on fit, fabric, fashion and brand across all leagues. Fanatics added a legging to the Lululemon assortment, which had offered no bottoms, and now offers a women's fit jersey. A female advisory council provides product feedback.

Celebrity lines anchor the push. Erin Andrews' Wear collection sold out promptly after Taylor Swift wore one of its tank tops at a Kansas City Chiefs game this month; Andrews holds deals with the NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, NCAA, NWSL, WWE, WNBA and U.S. Soccer. Jill Martin's women's collection, spanning the NFL, NBA, WNBA, MLB and college sports, was expanded last week.

What comes next?

Near-term commercial triggers include the World Series, NHL Hometown Remix, NFL Rivalry matchups with special uniforms for historic rivals such as the Chicago Bears and Green Bay Packers, and holiday. Half of fourth-quarter business is driven by gift-giving, Archibald said, supported by a gift guide, Black Friday and Cyber Monday pushes spanning hard goods, apparel and sleepwear — initiatives he compared directly to Macy's practice.

Further out, Fanatics is an official partner of LA28 and Team USA, supplying fan gear and outfitting all volunteers for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. "These large-scale events bring a different level of fandom to the category and create a lot of interest," Archibald said. "So we're really optimistic."