NSGA Forms Hockey Association

July 30, 2010

The National Sporting Goods Association (NSGA) has launched the Hockey Dealers Association (HDA), which will operate as an NSGA division.

The HDA is being established to:

· Create a platform for hockey retailers to share views and ideas;

· Provide information services;

· Provide market research; and

· Create a collective voice regarding vendor relations.

“Information, hockey-specific market research, a first-ever cost-of-doing-business benchmarking survey for hockey retailers, peer social networking, and a members-only website are important elements that would be available to HDA members,” said NSGA President & CEO Matt Carlson. “Our discussions with hundreds of hockey dealers gave us a clear message that an association devoted exclusively to hockey dealers was needed, and NSGA has the structure already in place to effectively manage such an association.”

The following hockey dealers have agreed to serve as founding members of the HDA Advisory Board: Michael Benoit, Total Hockey, St. Peters, Mo.; Fred Berry, Hockey Haven, Inc., Brookfield, Wis.; Lenny Grigorian, Hockey1, South Windsor, Conn.; Rob Howland, Pure Hockey, Franklin, Mass.; Scott Maki, Play It Again Sports, Minneapolis, Minn.; Bert Post, Hockey Headquarters, Sioux Falls, S.D.; and Wayne Zwicker, H.A. Zwicker, Bedford, Mass.

The Advisory Board, which will help chart the direction of the HDA, will evaluate and prioritize the services and programs that hockey dealers want and need.

HDA can be found on the Internet at http://www.hockeydealersassociation.org

For information on participating on the Hockey Dealers Advisory Committee, please contact NSGA’s Dan Kasen, (800) 815-5422, ext. 108; e-mail: dkasen@nsga.org dkasen@nsga.org> , or NSGA’s Chuck Suritz, (800) 815-5422, ext. 130; e-mail: csuritz@nsga.org csuritz@nsga.org> .

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