NASCAR banks on women to make its clothing line a success

Diane Sweet was perched atop a motor home at the third turn of the California Speedway in Fontana when the cars raced past her in a deafening blur.

The 39-year-old mother of three was hooked.

It was "exhilarating, exuberating,'' she said, reliving that moment three years ago. She recalled being "in awe of the cars and how fast they go, and the adrenaline rush you get just watching.''

Now, the apparel industry is betting that women such as Sweet are ready to move from watching to wearing.

The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing has struck a licensing deal with Los Angeles-area clothing manufacturer Jerry Leigh Inc. to make NASCAR-branded clothes for women -- including pants, shorts, shirts and mini-skirts -- and funnel them into the mainstream. The for-profit enterprise, based in Daytona Beach, Fla., says that 40 percent of its 75 million fans are women.

Retail behemoth Wal-Mart Stores Inc. began selling the NASCAR line in women's and plus sizes in some of its stores earlier this year. Kmart Corp. also carries the line. And specialty and department store chains, including Sears, Roebuck & Co., are testing the brand in juniors sizes.

A ready market

To attract other retailers, including specialty stores such as Hot Topic Inc. and Charlotte Russe Holding Inc., Jerry Leigh is developing other NASCAR-branded juniors products that are trendier and higher priced.

If this seems like a stretch to the fashionistas, NASCAR watchers say there's a ready market for such products.

More than one-third of American women over the age of 11 consider themselves fans of the sport, according to an ESPN poll released last month. Mike May, a spokesman for Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association International in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., which commissioned the survey, noted that more than 11 percent fell into the "avid fan'' category. That means they go to races, watch races on TV and know the drivers.

Vendors in New York recently showed racing-themed clothes in their back-to-school and holiday lines, including jumpsuits that looked like something a professional driver might wear. Dirt bike-inspired apparel, such as tight-fitting leather jackets and satin bomber jackets, also are showing up in young women's fashions.

Teen retailers including Gadzooks Inc. and Pacific Sunwear of California Inc. have racing brands in their stores. "It's one of the themes emerging for fall," said Elizabeth Pierce, an analyst with Sanders Morris Harris.

Among the key reasons: Women want clothes they can feel comfortable wearing all day, said Marshall Cohen, a retail analyst with market research firm NPD Group. And apparel designers are taking cues from lifestyle trends, including all types of athletics, which increasingly appeal to women.

'Taking it to the limit'

According to NPD Group, while total women's apparel sales fell 6 percent last year, sales of women's sports logo apparel jumped 24 percent. "We have today Annika Sorenstam playing golf on a men's tour," Cohen said. "There's not a gender barrier anymore, and women are taking it to the limit."

Still, some observers are skeptical about the new Jerry Leigh line, given that fans typically buy products linked to a favorite driver -- Dale Earnhardt Jr., Jeff Gordon -- and not the NASCAR brand itself.

"The NASCAR logo is not the primary draw,'' said Marty Brochstein, executive editor of the Licensing Letter in New York. "That's one of the questions in my mind as to how well, ultimately, this will do.''

Jerry Leigh, which is building the line incrementally as retailers assess demand, says that sales so far have surpassed expectations. It won't disclose exact figures, however. The company plans to expand distribution to sporting goods stores next year.

As long as the clothes are cute enough, Diane Sweet said, she'll probably buy them. "But I think apparel related directly to the driver would sell better with women," she added.

Sweet's 17-year-old daughter, Nacole, who unlike her two brothers is also an auto racing fan, grumbles that products sold at the track are too expensive.

She'd be happy to buy NASCAR clothes at Wal-Mart prices -- but only if they are stylish and "flatter a girl.''

The Wal-Mart line includes cropped pants, short skirts and scooped-neck shirts, often in red and black, with the NASCAR brand and bar logo, and jersey shorts with "Speedway'' printed across the rear.

Flashier offerings include sleeveless T-shirts with "Hotstuff'' across the chest or flames shooting up the front. Checkered flags adorn some items, along with messages such as "Who's your driver?" -- the burning question at any NASCAR track.

Many women have poured money into accessories and knickknacks as a way of supporting the drivers.

Nudged to the track

Andrew Leigh, president of family-owned Jerry Leigh, was nudged to the track by Tim Purdy, who heads the company's resort division in Florida and is an avid NASCAR fan.

"He kept begging me, saying, 'You've got to see this, Andrew,'" Leigh recalled.

Leigh had driven modified Formula One cars at the Fontana race track, just for fun, but knew nothing about stock car racing.

At Purdy's urging, the company struck a licensing deal with NASCAR to make some driver-specific accessories, including towels, backpacks and tote bags.

After discovering the lack of options for women, Leigh sent his designers to the race track. Last year, he attended the Daytona 500 himself.

Leigh was stunned by the throngs of fans arriving in Winnebagos, helicopters and private planes. It was like "a religious event,'' he said. The race attracted more than a million people a day.

"I got tingles, chills," Leigh said. "I saw all these potential customers."