Day 13 of MSBA 2013: The Manhattan Sports Business Adventure

Post by Matt Hittinger for June 14, 2013

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As we recently wrapped up our second full week under the bright lights of New York City, my peers and I are thankful for the chance to finally catch our breath.

Being from a smaller town in Indiana, I quickly had to adapt to the life in the big city ranging from the confusing subways to the fast-paced lifestyle.

We have been basically going non-stop since we arrived two weeks ago in a blur of organized chaos. Between our own personal internships, fascinating guest speakers, and never-ending networking, it seems like we have had barely any time to sleep!

Having said all this, these first two weeks of the Manhattan Sports Business Academy have been two of the most intriguing and productive weeks of my life. Reading the blogs posted before and after mine, one can see the incredible opportunities and events that our team has already experienced and the potential memories that will last a lifetime.

Furthermore, last Friday ended my first full work week at my internship at Modell’s Sporting Goods. Interestingly enough, before my MSBA began this summer, I had never even heard of Modell’s, as its market is solely on the East Coast, let alone even set foot in one of their retail stores. Within my first three days of working at Modell’s, I had breakfast with the CEO, Mitchell Modell, went to three of their different stores throughout Manhattan Island, and currently work in their corporate office in Times Square. Again, all things that were only made possible by my participation in the Manhattan Sports Business Academy.

At Modell’s I assist the retail buyers and help on their e-commerce team. This position is benefiting because it is a very hands-on position as I visit Nike, Adidas, Sketchers, Etc. warehouses and corporate offices and sit in on the actual meetings where my Modell’s supervisors determine what products they think will best fit in their stores. The team views their products every week to determine their best sellers, growing products, and the psychological consumer habits as to why some products are selling better than others. Then based off the season, certain professional teams success, and hot players at that time, they determine what shoes, licensed goods, and apparel they think would sell the best. Needless to say, I’m learning a ton of information every day and gaining valuable workforce experience that is essential to preparing me for my career.

The last aspect of the program that has been my favorite part so far is simply the people I’m surrounded with every day. The 21 other classmates, the members from last year helping out, and the leaders of the program that I entered this journey with two weeks ago have quickly not just become colleagues or friends but true family. I think this connection was bound to form in a group of very similarly motivated, creative, and positive people. I think this is often overlooked in the workforce but the chemistry this group has is obvious. We support each other, we encourage each other, and we motivate each other to get the most out of these eight weeks. We all know each other’s stories, why we are here, and what goals we want to accomplish with the short amount of time we have.

I’m confident that not only will I have lifelong friends after this summer but also future business partners and colleagues in the industry who will forever bring up the many meals shared together, the Sundays in Central Park, and incredible adventures we are going to experience the rest of the summer.