The renovated Ferris State Pro Shop and the Brutus Bistro reopened on Friday, Oct. 4.
The Ferris State Pro Shop will offer apparel and other Ferris-branded items to fans and students. The Brutus Bistro offers food and drinks. Both facilities have been taken over by Ferris Auxiliary Services.
Auxiliary Services are in charge of dining as well as Ferris Outfitters.
Associate Vice President for Marketing and Communications Dave Murray offered insight into the changes at the Brutus Bistro.
“There are actually no changes to the Bistro other than the menu items. Campus Dining determined the most popular items and will offer the same things at both the Bistro and the Concession stand,” Murray said. “The goal is to eliminate the need for customers to stand in one line, then get in another if they wanted something from both. We think this will make for a far more enjoyable experience for our students and fans.”
Assistant Athletic Director for Facilities and Game Operations Tim Blashill shared his excitement about partnering with Auxiliary Affairs to run the Brutus Bistro.
“Kim Rademacher is the executive director for the Bistro, in terms of Auxiliary Affairs, and that kind of happened last year when she wasn’t here yet. So she’s done a lot of good work to streamline that,” Blashill said. “The concessions are going to be a little more similar, which is probably a smart move in terms of how many people we get for hockey games, basketball games and different events like that.”
Blashill shared that he is very excited about the changes at the Brutus Bistro and how it will improve the game experience as it will have better food and be quicker than before.
The Pro Shop had actual renovations done to it. Murray explained the renovations.
“There was some renovation work in that area. Campus Outfitters made some changes to the Pro Shop, offering fans new and exciting apparel and other items we know fans will enjoy,” Murray said. “There were a number of changes to that store, including providing more space for merchandise. You’ll see some additional branding being installed in the weeks to come.”
Ticket Manager and Ice Operations Assistant Tony Hufnagel explained the split of the Pro Shop.
“There are some good changes from last year. We split the pro shop, so we have a skate shop now and a place for apparel to be sold,” Hufnagel said. “I know we’re all really excited about having hockey jerseys back on sale. We get a lot of questions about those.”
Blashill is very happy with the renovations to the Pro Shop and he’s appreciative of the staff that made the renovations possible.
“Great job by our facilities people. Karen Simmon was the project manager and did a really good job along with all of our trades,” Blashill said. ”They made this a reality so they really did a good job, and we’re excited that it’s going to be ready for hockey.”
Hufnagel agreed that the faculty did a great job on the renovations and is excited for the changes.
“Just being able to sell athletics attire in the sports complex is really cool. We’re excited to have it fully running. Last year we had a little bit of that stuff, but we’re going to be full go this year. We will have our skate shop open as always too. These are some nice renovations. Facilities and staff always do a nice job on all the renovations.”
You can visit the renovated Pro Shop and the Brutus Bistro now.