New owner of Play It Again Sports expands local franchise’s facility
Since he bought Play It Again Sports from Kim Humphreys Aug. 6, Neil Copeland hasn’t had much time for recreational activity.
The MU grad has been on his own version of a hurry-up, two-minute offense to remodel the store at 1206 W. Business Loop, his first retail venture, by the end of the month.
Plans call for 2,700 square feet of selling space, slightly less than double that of the previous store, Copeland said.
Play It Again Sports’ inventory includes new and used sports equipment. Customers can buy or trade for new or used equipment or sell their own equipment to the store for cash or store credit. The biggest two product categories are fitness equipment and baseball and softball equipment. The store also carries football, basketball, golf and other sports-related gear.
“The theory of Play It Again Sports stores is to carry 70 percent new equipment and 30 percent used equipment,” Copeland said. “But since the 30 percent of used equipment does not cost as much to buy and sell, it really makes up a lot of store’s product.”
Copeland said the store sells quality used sporting goods; none of the products it carries are worn out.
There is no exact formula for what a customer is paid for a piece of used equipment.
“As for selling, the best way to describe it to the vast majority of the people is that we sell a used item at about half of what it costs as new,” Copeland said.
“We provide an outlet for parents who have bought a pair of shoes that their kids have outgrown so they can get some value out of an item that is not being used anymore,” he said. “Kids who are 4 or 5 or 6 years old grow so fast that they outgrow a pair of baseball or soccer shoes in one season.”
Copeland says the store will have six employees. Shipments have started arriving to be shelved.
He credits the popularity of sports in mid-Missouri with creating a strong demand for equipment.
“I think the sporting environment is a huge part of the city of Columbia and the surrounding areas,” Copeland said. “We get people coming up from Jefferson City every day. Sports is just an integral part of the town. Columbia just has so many people who are into sports.”
Because of Columbia’s location in the center of the state, it draws athletes from other parts of Missouri for major sporting events like the Show-Me State Games and high school championships.
“That says a lot for our city and we ought to be proud of it,” Copeland said.
Bank of America provided financing for Copeland’s acquisition of the store, and he has signed a five-year lease with a five-year renewal option.
“We like this location and plan to be here for quite a while,” Copeland said. Play It Again Sports is a chain of individually owned franchises. The parent company is Winmark Corp., which is headquartered in Minneapolis. There are about 400 franchises nationwide.