By Isa Riano, Advertisement Manager
Campus Gear is a local business in San Antonio less than five minutes from Saint Leo University’s university campus. The store offers t-shirts and other merchandise for Saint Leo students and is open to everyone in the area.
Jean Nathe, the president of Trade Mark Sales, Inc. & Campus Gear, explained how she was passionate about selling merchandise for university students.
“We started with a multi-license for Saint Leo University, the University of Tampa, and Stetson University,” said Nathe.
Nathe explained that, while Trade Market Sales was an approved vendor for internal orders prior to getting the retail license, it was evident that the Saint Leo products sold better than the other two universities due to the kiosk’s proximity to the main campus.
“We started selling merchandise for Saint Leo University because of how close [Campus Gear’s Kiosk in San Antonio] is to the main campus,” she said.
Campus Gear not only offers products to Saint Leo students, but also aims to support the university’s departments in their development.
“We give royalties to Saint Leo from what we sell,” said Nathe.
Although the business has gained visibility with its advertisements and products, Nathe hopes more students visit the store and learn about its products.
“We have gotten some students, but I think we could always have a better turnout,” she said
Nathe also explained that she and her team have experienced some challenges in the process of reaching students.
“The summer is always the most challenging time of the year, as not a lot of students are around,” Nathe said. “We are working on updating our website in order to solve this issue.”
Items can be shipped to different cities in Florida and even to different states. Therefore, students can purchase at any time of the year regardless of where they are in the United States.
Apart from updating social media pages, Nathe has tried to create engagement with students through in-person connections.
“We went to Saint Leo University for homecoming in 2021,” she said. “This was a great opportunity, as a lot of students were around and learned about us.”
Nathe plans on working with her team to keep the organization’s Twitter and Instagram pages active in order to keep students posted about the business.
“We often offer discounts and seasonal items and would love for students to know about them,” she said.
Campus Gear also holds events open to the public. A recent one they had was Happy Fall on September 10. There was a ten percent discount at the Campus Gear Kiosk located in the Two Ole Hens store, as well as outside vendors and a food truck.
If you are interested in learning more about the store, you can stop by at 32747 State Rd 52, follow them on all social media platforms at @campusgear52, or contact Nathe at jean@trade-marksales.com.
*Note: This article is a paid advertisement. If you are interested in seeing your business or organization featured in the next issue of The Lions’ Pride, please contact our advertisement manager, Isa Riano, at isabella.riano@email.saintleo.edu to discuss purchasing an advertisement article
