Prepare to be swamped with more Gator gear.
Butler Enterprises announced this week that Alumni Hall, an athletic store franchise, will be joining Butler Plaza at 3730 SW Archer Road. It will be in the spot formerly occupied by The Floor Trader.
“We’ve been wanting to get into Gainesville for a long time now,” said Jeff Goodfriend, president of the chain. “My mission was to open a collegiate store that did things a little differently.”
That mission evolved into creating a destination for all Florida Gators paraphernalia.
“If we don’t have it, we’ll get it for you,” Goodfriend said.
The store will be 4,400 square feet, which is larger than the typical Alumni Hall store, he said. It will offer a 10 percent student discount.
David Lopez, a 19-year-old UF political science and economics sophomore who works at UF RecSports, said he didn’t think there are too many Gator stores in town.
“I think there should be more so the price goes down,” he said.
Lopez said he thinks students will go in looking for a specific item, whereas alumni who come to town for gamedays will go to the store because it advertises good customer service.
“Alumni are not really price-conscious when it comes to Gator stuff,” he said. “I think they do look for a better environment and better customer service.”
Goodfriend said he thinks Gainesville residents will like what Alumni Hall has to offer.
“I believe that we can bring something to Gainesville that they’ve never seen,” he said.
A version of this story ran on page 5 on 10/18/2013 under the headline "New Gator paraphernalia store to join Butler Plaza lineup"
