·
Loading...
Loading...
How to price a team store so families buy, the program raises meaningful money, and nobody feels gouged — a full pricing model with worked examples.
Pricing is the single most-debated topic in team stores. Coordinators agonize over it; parents notice it; the fundraising margin depends on it. Yet most coordinators set prices by copying what another team did or accepting whatever the platform's default is, and then wonder why the result felt off.
This guide gives you an actual framework — one that produces prices you can defend to a parent who asks why the hoodie is $52, and that reliably raises meaningful money.
Every item in a team store has three relevant numbers:
Markup percentage is margin divided by production cost. A $40 cost hoodie sold at $52 has $12 margin and 30% markup.
The strategic question is: how do you pick the retail price?
Coordinators approach pricing in one of three ways. Understanding which mode you're in makes every other decision clearer.
Mode 1: Cost-plus with fixed markup. Every item gets the same markup percentage. Simple, fair-feeling, easy to explain. 30% markup across the board is the most common implementation. Works well when the product mix is uniform (all apparel, similar price points).
Mode 2: Variable markup by category. Performance items (jerseys, racing suits) get lower markup (15–20%) because families comparison-shop them. Lifestyle items (hoodies, tees, hats) get standard markup (25–30%). Premium items (outerwear, bags) get higher markup (35–40%) because the buyers for those items are typically less price-sensitive.
Mode 3: Strategic pricing. Each item priced deliberately for a specific role — loss leaders, margin items, anchors. Requires more thought per item but maximizes revenue on a well-understood roster.
Most coordinators should be in Mode 1 or Mode 2. Mode 3 is for multi-store veterans who know their families' price sensitivity well.
Before setting prices, assess your community's price sensitivity. This is the single most important input and most coordinators skip it.
Signals of low price sensitivity (families will pay premium):
Signals of high price sensitivity (families need careful pricing):
Mixed signals (most teams). Middle schools, suburban public high schools, most rec leagues. Assume moderate price sensitivity, use standard markup, monitor and adjust.
For most teams, here's the model that works:
Base markup: 30%. This is the default. It produces meaningful fundraising dollars and doesn't feel predatory.
Category adjustments:
Price ending convention: prices ending in 0 feel rounded and intentional ($40, $50). Prices ending in 9 feel promotional ($39, $49). For team stores, rounded prices feel more premium and less like a commercial retail store. Use rounded.
Let's price a swim team store.
Items, production cost, category:
Applying the model:
Blended store markup: roughly 27%. Meaningful fundraising, defensible prices, nothing feels like a gouge.
Including one deliberately premium item — a $120 parka, a $95 letterman-style jacket, a specialty bag — does two things:
The rule: always include one item priced 2x the next-most-expensive. It doesn't need to be a bestseller; it just needs to exist.
Some programs can sustain 35–40% markup without participation loss. Signs you're in this category:
When you do push markup higher, don't do it uniformly. Push it on lifestyle and premium items (hoodies, outerwear, bags), keep it restrained on performance items. A store where everything is 40% marked up feels expensive; a store where the hoodie is 35% and the racing suit is 15% feels balanced.
Cost-sensitive communities require the opposite adjustment:
Fundraising margin per family is lower, but participation is higher. The total revenue difference usually favors lower markup for this community type.
Many team stores charge shipping on top of the retail price. This is a pricing decision, not just a logistics one.
Flat-rate shipping ($5–$8) per order. Simplest. Parents accept it. Works for most situations.
Free shipping at a threshold ($75+). Excellent basket-expansion tool. Families add items to reach the threshold. The platform eats (or reduces) the shipping cost above the threshold.
Shipping rolled into item prices. Hide the shipping in the retail price. Item prices look higher but there's no checkout surprise. Some coordinators prefer this; it reduces cart abandonment.
Whichever you pick, be consistent across the store. Mixed models (some items free shipping, others not) confuse parents.
Occasionally a parent pushes back: "Why is the hoodie $52?"
The honest answer is: "The hoodie costs the team $40 to produce. We're charging $52 so every family's order raises about $12 for the program. That money goes to [specific use: travel tournaments, new equipment, etc.]. If the price is a barrier for your family, let me know and we'll work it out."
Three things this response does:
Most parents who push back are calibrating what's going on, not actually objecting. The honest answer defuses the conversation.
Some programs run two versions of a store — a "family" price and a "booster" price (where the booster price is $5–$10 higher, and boosters pay it voluntarily). This is advanced, and most teams don't need it. If you do implement it, be transparent about both prices and what the difference funds.
Before launching your store, walk through this:
If every box checks, your pricing is ready.
Pricing isn't about the highest number families will accept — it's about the number that maximizes the product of participation and margin. Well-calibrated prices raise more money than greedy prices every single time.
How to close a team store cleanly, handle late requests, capture lessons, and set up the next season for even better performance.
Season-specific timing playbook for team stores — when to launch, when to close, and how pre-season, in-season, and post-season rhythms differ between spring and fall programs.
How to communicate with parents so your team store converts, avoids annoyance, and builds the reputation that compounds into future-store trust.
More resources
Short-form articles, use cases, and the learning library.
Trusted by leagues, districts, and athletic departments
Want more guides like this?
The team-store playbook — 5 short emails over 2 weeks. No spam.
Compare
© 2026 TeamStores.AI Sport