The Dallas Cowboys recently concluded another disappointing season but the lack of success will hardly lessen the devout following the NFL franchise enjoys in the Rio Grande Valley.
George Dunn, a senior retail manager for the Cowboys, says the RGV ranks third in Texas for sale of team merchandise, T-shirts, caps and all manner of gear with the familiar blue star. The third-best market ranking (only Dallas-Fort Worth and San Antonio are above the RGV) helped to convince the Cowboys retail operations that it needed a third store in the region.
There were existing stores at La Plaza Mall in McAllen and Sunrise Mall in Brownsville. Dunn led a team of Cowboys retail executives on an early-2024 tour of the Valley to begin determining where to place its third local store. The obvious need was a location between Brownsville and McAllen. The initial thought, Dunn said, was to go with a Harlingen store before further study and analysis determined otherwise.
“We had a 60-mile gap between our stores in McAllen and Brownsville,” said Dunn, who is based in Frisco. “We decided Mercedes was a better fit for our footprint in the Valley. We’re right there in the middle.”
Mexican Shopper Impact
The new Dallas Cowboys Pro Shop in Mercedes opened during the week of Black Friday in November 2024 at the Rio Grande Valley Premium Outlets.
In true Cowboys devotion fashion, there were nearly 100 fans standing in line before the store’s first opening. The store is located in the southeast corner of the outlet mall in Mercedes. It has the distinction of being the Cowboys’ first factory pro shop. This means that that on occasion the Mercedes store may be the first shop to debut new products as the Cowboys gauge fan tastes and preferences.
An added element for the outlet mall store location is the influential consumer presence of Mexican nationals. The Cowboys command a strong following in Mexico City – and much closer to the Valley – a base of support in Monterrey in Nuevo Leon. The Cowboys in their history have played four preseason games in Mexico. Three of those games were in Mexico City and one was in Monterrey. Since 2022, the Cowboys have partnered with Televisa/Univision to broadcast preseason games in Mexico.
“Our (RGV) managers gave us that insight,” Dunn said of the Mexican shopper demographic. “It was definitely a factor in advocating for a new location there.”
Combine the always-loyal Dallas Cowboy sports demographic in the Valley to the team’s popularity in Mexico and it all adds up to the NFL franchise seeing deep South Texas as an important market.
“The RGV has been very important to us for many years,” Dunn said.
Fast Turnaround
The turnaround from an early-2024 market reconnaissance visit to deciding on a third RGV location and then opening a new store in the same year represents a fast turnaround, Dunn said.
The Cowboys methodology on such matters is usually more deliberate, but contributing to a faster process was knowing the Valley is such a solid market. The third store in the heart of the region reaffirms the franchise’s connection to the RGV. A recent walk around the store shows fashions and styles of all types with jerseys of current players mixed with Cowboy icons of yesteryear like Roger Staubach and Troy Aikman.
“We’re really pleased with our new Mercedes store and how well it has been received,” Dunn said. “We have definitely grown our sales and presence in the RGV.”