Your holiday shopping starts here! by Michael Armini December 12, 2022 Share this story Copy Link Link Copied! Email Facebook LinkedIn Twitter WhatsApp Reddit Shortly after I started at Northeastern (14 years ago) I was walking through the Prudential Center mall in downtown Boston. I came across a kiosk where a rather grouchy guy was selling university-branded hats and sweatshirts—Harvard, BC, MIT. I asked if he had any Northeastern gear and he said no. I then mentioned that I worked at Northeastern and could source him some Husky merchandise. His reply was terse: “Look, I only carry what I can move and I don’t have demand for Northeastern stuff.” Well, a lot can change in a little over a decade. As some of you know, Northeastern was recently featured in Starbucks’ popular “Been There” series, which had previously been focused on U.S. cities and states. We don’t know of another university that has partnered with Starbucks on this. And what started with a simple Northeastern mug quickly expanded to include tumblers, water bottles, and other accessories. One of my favorite stories about this campaign is that some of the coffee mugs were selling out so quickly that people were forced to track them down on eBay, where they were selling at nearly three times the price. A $14.00 mug was being sold for $40.00, and some bids for the Northeastern mug were in excess of $80.00. To continue capitalizing on our current brand strength, our Vice President for Marketing, Rebecca Anzuoni, is in the process of forging similar partnerships with a range of popular brands, including Vineyard Vines, North Face, and even the very tony Smathers & Branson. And if these outlets seem a bit too posh for you, Rebecca and her team recently got Northeastern’s dedicated Amazon store up and running: www.amazon.com/northeasternuniversity. A lot more merchandise will hit this site soon, but there’s enough here today to put a Husky spin on your holiday shopping!