Issue #36: Merch is like, actually good now.

We're not just talking screen-printed t-shirts anymore.

Good morning friends! First thing first: we hit 1,000 subscribers this week! Wow. I’m feeling so proud and grateful to have achieved this milestone ahead of my 1-year anniversary of writing Brand Baby. Thank you to everyone who subscribes and reads this little newsletter. 

Eeeek!!

I’m traveling a lot this month, but when I’m back in November, let’s start getting serious about a Brand Baby get-together in NYC to celebrate…

Alright, let’s get into this week’s issue (oh and btw, please don’t count how many times I use the word ‘merch’ in this post, okay?)

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Beyond the screen-printed tee 👕

Coming off the heels of my conversation with Fortune last week about the presidential candidates’ campaign merch, I’ve been thinking about merch in general, and specifically how concert tour merch has gotten much better recently. Musical artists are progressing from screen-printed t-shirts and hoodies to actually cute stuff, like Olivia Rodrigo’s adorable butterfly tote and charm bracelet as part of her Guts tour collection, or Chappell Roan’s iconic camo hat. And Sabrina Carpenter is selling hair clips, throw pillows, and temporary tattoos for her Short n’ Sweet merch.

I have not been to the concert but I would 100% buy this.

Rethinking tour merch with cuter designs and more functional products makes sense. I mean, the last piece of concert merch that I purchased was a t-shirt from Tyler Childers’ concert at MSG last May, and let me tell you, I only wear it within the confines of my own apartment. Sure, it’s kind of cute, but even less than six months out from the purchase, I’ve already resigned it to “indoor clothes” status. Which brings us to a big part of the conversation around swag (can I say ‘swag’ without sounding too cringy? I’m just gonna say it.) in general: sustainability.

Let’s just say that any form of merch – whether it’s an ugly t-shirt or a cute acrylic claw clip – doesn’t support sustainability efforts. However, I do think that cute, functional merch is better than not-cute, not-functional merch, as far as sustainability concerns go. So in that sense, improvements to merch might be slightly beneficial, while obviously still not ideal. 

The power of well-designed merch 🧢

From a brand perspective, fun and unique and well-designed merch is appealing, helping artists (or political candidates) stand out. Introducing unexpected product types beyond classic apparel options or printing unique, stand-out graphics on merch offerings can be smart too, since it can lead to that product or design becoming synonymous with the artist. 

Take Chappell Roan, for instance. Even after the Harris-Walz campaign’s adoption of the camo trucker hat, that product and design is still synonymous with Chappell and her fan base. The hat has become iconic, in a way that few other pieces of tour merch ever have (if you can think of any others, let me know in the comments!). It’s hard to pull off, but if you can create a product so unique while also hitting on a trend, then it’s possible to successfully align that product to a person, movement, or campaign. And hats are a pretty ubiquitous piece of tour merch, but Chappell landed on the perfect storm of unconventional yet trendy with her Midwest Princess logo slapped on top of the camo print.

I mean, iconic, no?

The flip side 🎀

For Sabrina Carpenter’s merch, logos and branding aren’t as obvious, but the product types are unique. Claw clips, throw pillows, and underwear sets? All very unexpected products that are sure to draw buyers. But at the same time, there are some disadvantages to pursuing unique and unbranded product types. If your logo or tour name or other identifying visuals aren’t immediately visible, then tour merch loses some of its value as a tool to market your brand. Sure, you can make money on merch whether or not your logo is visible, but if a primary or secondary goal is to promote the brand by way of fans wearing that merch in public, then a claw clip might not accomplish that. 

So cute! But I would not instinctively associate these clips with Short n’ Sweet.

Have you purchased any merch recently from musical artists, political candidates, or otherwise? If so, what factors went into your purchase decision? Let me know what you think, and see you next week :)