The Ohio State University is preparing to host the first-ever Buckeye Fall Fashion Market on Thursday from 4-9 p.m. in the Huntington Club at the Ohio Stadium. The event is a one-stop shopping opportunity for Buckeyes.
The event is free to students and has a $10 entry fee for anyone without a BuckID.
Anna Vonderhaar, director of marketing and loyalty programming at Ohio State, said the event will feature 20 brands, including Champion, Vera Bradley and Lululemon, who are presenting their collections of officially licensed Ohio State gear.
“Some of these brands are familiar to a lot of people, but there are also some that people might not be as familiar with,” Vonderhaar said. “What’s special is that it’s the first time you’ll be able to shop all these brands in one place.”
The event has three presenting sponsors – The Wild Collective, Wrangler and Colleseum – who have dedicated a lot of their time and effort to ensure fans’ fashion needs are being met, said Vonderhaar.
“The goal is to make sure it is meeting our fan base,” Vonderhaar said. “We’ve heard from our fan base that there is a want for more women’s-wear assortment.”
Maria Donoghue, executive vice president of marketing at Colosseum and Wrangler, said that the interesting thing about the college market is that when it comes to shopping, women become the minority.
“For a couple of reasons, women’s fashion is always such a big part of the clothing industry but in college, it’s a much smaller piece,” Donoghue said. “In college, men take up about 60% of the market. It’s always been important to focus on growing that women’s business.”
Donoghue said the Colosseum booth won’t be selling their collection but will instead be focusing on current trends and the future of the brand, while the Wrangler booth will have their current collection of Ohio State merchandise available.
Whitney Bansin, CEO and designer at The Wild Collective, said that although the brand is based in Las Vegas, Nevada she is excited to be a part of the event.
“We are a fashion-forward brand so being a presenting sponsor made a ton of sense to us,” said Bansin. “Ohio State is a great collaborator and allows us to really lean into our designs and create new and exciting products.”
Bansin said that The Wild Collective will be bringing their current collection – which includes glittery bomber jackets and leather pieces – to the event.
Vonderhaar said that although this is the first time this event has happened she hopes to continue working towards providing fans with more opportunities to shop their favorite Ohio State clothes.
More information about the event is available at The Team Shop.
