Rugby World Cup goodies almost sold out

Rebel Sport managing director Rod Duke (right) said the company had sold between 200,000 and 250,000 pieces of World Cup merchandise since the tournament began. Photo / Brett Phibbs

Fans looking to score themselves Rugby World Cup merchandise bargains should act fast because gear is selling out at a record rate, according to sports stores.

Rebel Sport, Champions of the World, The Warehouse and the official World Cup stores owned by Sportfolio have almost sold out.

Rebel Sport managing director Rod Duke said the company had sold between 200,000 and 250,000 pieces of World Cup merchandise since the tournament began.

"I've got very little [World Cup gear] left ... The jumpers are going to be ongoing anyway, but maybe we'll discount the key chains and wallets.

"It's just rats and mice."

A lot of the interest had come from tourists buying their team jerseys, Mr Duke said.

"The jerseys for all the teams sold well, particularly in regions where the foreign teams were based."

Rebel Sport hit the headlines when it slashed the price of All Blacks jerseys from $220 to $170, and the All Blacks jersey without the World Cup logo from $190 to $150. Customers responded to the cuts. "It's been fabulous," said Mr Duke. "I wish we had another one [World Cup] next year."

The Warehouse downtown Auckland store manager, Geordie Shields, said the store had almost sold out of World Cup stock after the final.

"We sold a considerable amount in the last week.

"We've got almost nothing left at all. We've done really well."

Mr Shields said the store had benefited from its location.

"It was a focal point with Party Central down there [at Queens Wharf] so we had a great number of people through."

Champions of the World, also in downtown Auckland, had been swamped with tourists, said manager Trish Haxton.

The store had discounted some World Cup merchandise by 40 per cent from three weeks ago.

Online stores are also discounting their World Cup merchandise.

Downtown Auckland gift stores, including Kiwi Giftland, Wild Kiwi and the OK Gift Shop, are discounting the gear by 15 to 20 per cent.