Dick’s Sporting Goods & Female Basketball Players: An F for Effort

Written By: Kim - Oct• 06•14

2014-10-06 14.56.08In today’s mail I received a nice 28 page, full-color brochure from Dick’s Sporting Goods touting their basketball gear. There is one major problem with Dick’s new basketball brochure: not one female is represented on its pages. Oh, there are young men, teenage boys and yes, even younger boys. Sorry, middle-aged and older men, but apparently you don’t play ball either. But, apparently Dick’s Sporting Goods also does not believe that girls and women play basketball. No one on their marketing/communications team has ever heard of the Women’s National Basketball Assocation, either. Oh wait, there are women in the brochure: background crowd in the stand and cheerleaders. That earns them an F for effort.

Female athletes deserve better.

I checked the brochure three times because I wanted to make sure that I was not mistaken. Surely, this is a 2014 brochure and not something from the “olden days.” Surely, the marketing/communication gurus at Dick’s who ask me everything from my zip code to my shopping preferences know who their market is. Surely, they have heard that yes, women do play sports traditionally dominated by men and in many cases, are better athletes.

The kicker on the brochure? It was addressed to me – clearly someone with a female name. And why was that? Not because I am some cool athlete, but because I make these kinds of purchasing decisions. I get the store “discount” card so that we get coupons, discounts on purchases, invites to special events, etc. Oh wait, there was a nod to breast cancer awareness month on the vanity link www.dickssportingoods.com/basketball. I suppose that is what the womenfolk should be grateful for – that this retailer is recognizing our boobs and the fact that we may lose one to breast cancer.

Female athletes deserve better than to be ignored by Dick’s Sporting Goods. If you love a female athlete, let Dick’s know that this is not acceptable.

A Rude Awakening But A Lesson Learned

Written By: Kim - Jan• 26•13

Recently, I was in a local eatery at o’dark thirty. My daughter and her school project partner were with me. We had to deliver them and the project to school. You know that it’s risky to take a school project on to the bus.

As we were eating breakfast, another student from their school walked in with her Mom. The girls said they did not want her to see them and that she was a mean girl. After this girl and her Mom finished ordering, the Mom suddenly exploded at the child. She was yelling about her mumbling and chastising her for not speaking up. This woman was loud nasty for o’dark thirty. Well, she was loud and nasty for any time of the day actually. Clearly no one is awake at this time, especially tweens and teens. They are practically walking zombies until 11 am anyway.

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©Billy Alexander via stock.xchng

This woman’s public display of crassness, poor parenting and rantings were good reminders to me of how not to parent my children. I told the girls that this Mom’s behavior probably explains why this other student is mean. If that is all you hear from your parents, it’s what you become.

I won’t lie. I lose my temper with my children. And, yes, I raise my voice, sometimes more than I care to admit. Parenting children is not for the faint of heart. But this woman’s behavior certainly caught my attention. It was an excellent reminder of how not to act, in public or private.