Champs Sports: a UX analysis
Champs Sports — a brand that many of us are very familiar with. In fact, anyone who grew up in the suburbs most likely had one at their local shopping mall. Champs sells a variety of athletic goods, and their primary focus is sneakers, along with hats. Although personally I don’t think that I have ever stepped foot inside of a Champs Sports, I do like many of the brands and products that they carry; Puma sneakers, Adidas, Nike, etc etc. Other comparable stores to the brand include Finish Line, Footlocker and Runners Edge. The brand’s target market spans from teens to people in their mid to late 30’s who are in need of athletic apparel.
The Website: upon entering champssports.com, it was a fairly straightforward experience, very bright and colorful. It’s direct in the sense that right at the top of the page, there is a directory for sub-categories to make it a fairly easy shopping experience. User centric? Definitely. However, one thing I didn’t love about the website, was the amount of promo (sales, extra 20%, etc). I typically prefer a more simple aesthetic, and I don’t typically like to be so obviously marketed to. Personally, I wouldn’t say anything was particularly innovative, but it’s effective and easy to use.
Overall, the site was on the busy side, which I do find distracting from shopping. There was a ton of promo, a ton of wording, and flashy images. I personally don’t think that this is a good approach for a retail website, however maybe they're marketing more to teens/young adults (hence the “Trending on the Gram” tab…)
Customer service wise, everything appeared to be there and easy to use. They provide a contact hotline, email addresses, and an online customer service chat widget. The website has a ton of information about the brand, and anything a potential customer might need to know, they offer readily available and easy to find. I’d give the website UX a good 7/10, it was easy, reliable, willing to give important information, but there wasn’t anything really cutting edge, nothing really unique and innovative either.
The App: Champs Sports has their own mobile app, allowing customers to shop directly from the app. It offers information on new sneaker releases, the closest location to the customer in case they want to shop in-store, etc. The app too, has very loud promotional pictures and messages, which again, I don’t love. The app certainly makes for quick shopping, and was incredibly easy to use. I thought their “recently launched” tab was a cool idea, especially with the sneaker trend so at peak these days. The app is a little more aesthetically pleasing than the website, and definitely a little more innovative. Overall verdict for the app — 8/10.
We believe in the importance of Game. In having a style. A swagger. — Champs Sports
