Pop-up merch tents ready for busy Talladega race weekend

TALLADEGA, Ala. ( WIAT ) – Race weekend in Talladega is here, and fans have begun flocking to the city for the fun. Part of that fun includes shopping for souvenirs and merchandise along the way.

Driving into Talladega, pop-up tents line the way to the track, and many have more than just run-of-the-mill merchandise inside.

“You’re going to find things here that you’re not going to be able to find anywhere else,” Crystal Leith, an employee at an unnamed merch tent, said. “The merchandise finds us.”

Collectibles and vintage items line the tables of the merch tent at the gas station along Speedway Boulevard.

“This shirt right here is a very popular shirt, it’s hard to find,” Leith said. “It’s what they call an all-over print. It’s printed on the sleeves, the front, the back, and of course, it’s Earnhardt and it’s vintage.”

While the tent doesn’t have a name, Leith has worked there for 15 out of its 30 year history, traveling from track to track. But she says the economy has taken its toll on private tents like the ones she works at.

“Well, it’s not as good as it used to be. You know, things are pretty tough right now in this little business,” Leith said. “We do have the same people that come back over and over and we have very good customers that support us.”

One customer, Dallas Allgood, stops at the tent every time he comes to Talladega for races.

“Just to see what they have. It changes from year to year,” Allgood said. “Had an authentic Dale Jr. jersey that I got two years ago over here. Most of them in here, sometimes they’re not the authentic NASCAR gear, this was and it was at a really good price.”

Each tent has a unique inventory. Some offering everything from vintage shirts and collectible diecasts to racecar body parts and other sporting jerseys.

“You wouldn’t expect that kind of item here. Because here you are dealing with NASCAR, you’ve got sports like football, hockey, and then all of a sudden, you see something like the Lone Ranger guitar. It’s like ‘what’s that doing here?’,” Trisha Cook with K&K Collectibles said.

To build the up the inventory, many tents buy people’s private collections.

“[The boss] just recently purchased some from Dallas, Georgia and him and two other vendors went on a Dale Sr. lot off of E-Bay so they got a bunch of vintage stuff from him,” Ashlie Scott with K&K Collectibles said.

Some pop-up merchandise tents say location plays a big role in how much business rolls in over a race weekend as the closer to the track they can set up, the more people will stop by.

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