When the UCLA football team scores a touchdown, it means six points on the scoreboard.
It also means 5 percent off the price tag of BearWear merchandise and a small boost in sales for Associated Students UCLA.
With the team showing more promise than last year, some of that success has translated into higher souvenir sales at the Rose Bowl and the UCLA Store. The Score Big program also allows students to receive up to 25 percent off on the Monday following a home game for each touchdown the football team scores ““ as long as they present their game ticket, said Patrick Healey, director of ASUCLA general merchandise.
“Any win is definitely a boost in spirits on campus,” Healey said.
Sales were already off to a better start than last year, but Saturday’s game saw the highest sales of the three home games this season, bringing in more than $175,000. Healey said the major impact in sales came from the I’m Going to College program, which brought school children from around Los Angeles to the football game.
Lauren Rennee, an urban planning graduate student, said the promotion brought her into the store, although she had some trouble finding the right sweatshirt because of the large crowd.
“There was nothing in a size small … it was quite frustrating.”
She said she plans to go to every home game with a group of other urban planning students.
“This is the first school I’ve ever gone to where the team is worth rooting for,” Rennee said. “No one has ever heard of the Columbia Lions for a reason.”
While ASUCLA doesn’t plan sales around athletic performance, the added enthusiasm benefits everyone, Healey said.
When the team plays well, students like to show off their school gear more, said Edward Chung, a third-year communication studies student. While the team’s success is important, Chung said it doesn’t really matter to him whether UCLA wins or loses.
“I’m going to be a fan anyway,” he said.