While it always seems impossible in the cold and sleepy first months of the year, summer, and with it, festival season, rolls around faster than anticipated.
So, if you’ve been thinking about launching merch for festival season, it pays to start planning it well in advance. Which is why we created a concise guide to selling merch before, during and after the event, to help you create hype around your event and achieve your goals.
BEFORE THE EVENT
Launching your campaign ahead of time means you can give ticket holders early access to merch – plus, dropping the tee alongside the lineup announcement, or other messaging means the campaigns amplify each other and build hype. From your perspective, it also means you can secure profit upfront, while giving fans a chance to receive their t-shirts before the event.
DURING THE EVENT
It’s helpful to create a smaller run of production that allows physical items to be available on-site, complete with QR codes to order from if sizes run out, or fans prefer to receive the item to their home rather than carry them during the event. Creating a smaller run but with a back-up option to collect orders at the festival means you don’t lose the opportunity to make a sale even if you sell out of stock – but you’re not left with surplus if sales don’t go as planned.
AFTER THE EVENT
If your merch got a great reception at the pre-sale stage or during the event, or if you have leftover stock, consider running a post-event campaign with a ‘last chance to buy’ or ‘exclusive relaunch’ messaging. Both pre and post-event campaigns are done on a pre-order/print on demand model, meaning reduced fees and no waste.
Explore our Creator Toolkit for tips on launching your campaign, selling on socials and more.