Nicklasson Athletics

Nicklasson Athletics was started in 1946 by Henry Nicklasson. He was a well known baseball player in the area. He also was also a coach and a public school teacher. In 1988 the store changed hands and is now owned by three men. Brad was the manager who was was able to be interviewed for this piece.

Brad immediately made it clear how the majority of business at Nicklasson is done. 75 percent of the business done at Nicklasson is done out of the back door! Nicklasson is the primary sports provider for schools in southern Minnesota. Nicklasson does business with over 120 schools including Gustavus Adolphus, Minnesota State, Bethany and Martin Luther College. They send represenative to the various schools. The store provides jerseys and athletic equipment for grade schools, high schools, and colleges throughout southern Minnesota.

Nicklasson has 20 employees. They have 10 full time employees and 10 par time employees. They have a large warehouse and own a printing shop in St. James. The printing shop in St. James has only been owned by Nicklasson for the last 10 years. The acquisition of the printing shop was a huge step for the company because now all of the jersey's can be made in house.

Brad had a few things to say about the recession and the unique way that it affected his business. Brad said, "The recession has hurt us a little bit. We see it in the schools. The schools are having their budgets cut. The recession has increased our involvement with booster clubs. Over the last 5 years we have seen an increase in dealing with booster clubs who purchase things for the school but the recession has increased our dealings with booster clubs."

The biggest change that Nicklasson has experienced recently is in technology. More and more coaches are using the internet and e-mail. This has forced Nicklasson to use its web of connections to get a website up and running.

Brad said his favorite part of owning Nicklasson is knowning that he loves his job and seeing the kids grow up.