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Post by recordingengineer on Oct 21, 2022 0:40:08 GMT -6
I want to grab a new sweatshirt for the season… Why does it seem no gear manufacturer has apparel nowadays?
I mean I’d sport API’s logo all day long, but I’ve never seen any for sale!
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Post by sirthought on Oct 21, 2022 3:47:21 GMT -6
This should go in the off topic section.
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ericn
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Post by ericn on Oct 21, 2022 5:17:39 GMT -6
I want to grab a new sweatshirt for the season… Why does it seem no gear manufacturer has apparel nowadays? I mean I’d sport API’s logo all day long, but I’ve never seen any for sale! Man in years passed I donated a tone of gear swag to a homeless shelter, saw a guy in a Yamaha jacket and EAW hoodie, new where is stuff all came from. |
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Post by drumsound on Oct 21, 2022 8:13:18 GMT -6
I want to grab a new sweatshirt for the season… Why does it seem no gear manufacturer has apparel nowadays? I mean I’d sport API’s logo all day long, but I’ve never seen any for sale! Man in years passed I donated a tone of gear swag to a homeless shelter, saw a guy in a Yamaha jacket and EAW hoodie, new where is stuff all came from. Yeah, when I worked in MI I went years never buying a T-shirt. |
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ericn
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Post by ericn on Oct 21, 2022 8:24:38 GMT -6
Man in years passed I donated a tone of gear swag to a homeless shelter, saw a guy in a Yamaha jacket and EAW hoodie, new where is stuff all came from. Yeah, when I worked in MI I went years never buying a T-shirt. The thing that kind of sucked is at Full Compass sales had to wear a Shirt and Tie so you couldn’t wear swag except on casual Friday. After the first month of casual Friday I realized someone in the building had to look like they worked there and were in charge. So I started wearing a Suit 5 days a week. |
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Post by chessparov on Oct 21, 2022 8:49:23 GMT -6
It's been strongly rumored an organized group of clever clothing thieves, have run rampant at many Chinese textile factories.
They are considered dangerous and still...
At Large.
Chrus
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Post by seawell on Oct 21, 2022 9:14:40 GMT -6
I found a Fender shirt at Target out of all places. I agree, would love to see more manufacturers have an apparel page.
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ericn
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Post by ericn on Oct 21, 2022 10:02:40 GMT -6
I found a Fender shirt at Target out of all places. I agree, would love to see more manufacturers have an apparel page. For most manufacturers it can get expensive pretty quickly, your not ordering enough stuff to get a discount short of retail, you have to spread it out over a bunch of sizes it can just be a mess and then the expense of parking capital, and space in a non audio item. If you are a fan of polos, sweat shirts and the like you can find decent art work of logos online & probably get a small time shop with an embroidery machine to do a one off. Technically you need permission from the manufacturer, but Most small time shops won’t care. Years ago I had a short run of polos done with the permission, about 6 months later I get a call from the manufacturer asking where I had had the shirts done because they had seen a guy I worked with who had one and thought they looked better than their own. |
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Post by seawell on Oct 21, 2022 11:55:47 GMT -6
I found a Fender shirt at Target out of all places. I agree, would love to see more manufacturers have an apparel page. For most manufacturers it can get expensive pretty quickly, your not ordering enough stuff to get a discount short of retail, you have to spread it out over a bunch of sizes it can just be a mess and then the expense of parking capital, and space in a non audio item. If you are a fan of polos, sweat shirts and the like you can find decent art work of logos online & probably get a small time shop with an embroidery machine to do a one off. Technically you need permission from the manufacturer, but Most small time shops won’t care. Years ago I had a short run of polos done with the permission, about 6 months later I get a call from the manufacturer asking where I had had the shirts done because they had seen a guy I worked with who had one and thought they looked better than their own. They should use something like Teespring so it is made on demand and then Teespring just takes a cut out of the sale. No inventory, no upfront cost at all. It's what I use and it has worked really well 👍🏼 |
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ericn
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Post by ericn on Oct 21, 2022 12:14:24 GMT -6
For most manufacturers it can get expensive pretty quickly, your not ordering enough stuff to get a discount short of retail, you have to spread it out over a bunch of sizes it can just be a mess and then the expense of parking capital, and space in a non audio item. If you are a fan of polos, sweat shirts and the like you can find decent art work of logos online & probably get a small time shop with an embroidery machine to do a one off. Technically you need permission from the manufacturer, but Most small time shops won’t care. Years ago I had a short run of polos done with the permission, about 6 months later I get a call from the manufacturer asking where I had had the shirts done because they had seen a guy I worked with who had one and thought they looked better than their own. They should use something like Teespring so it is made on demand and then Teespring just takes a cut out of the sale. No inventory, no upfront cost at all. It's what I use and it has worked really well 👍🏼 The thing you have to understand is 80% of any manufacturers logo wear is given away. You reward customers, dealers reps, it is amazing the loyalty a free t shirt will get you. |
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Post by seawell on Oct 21, 2022 13:08:06 GMT -6
They should use something like Teespring so it is made on demand and then Teespring just takes a cut out of the sale. No inventory, no upfront cost at all. It's what I use and it has worked really well 👍🏼 The thing you have to understand is 80% of any manufacturers logo wear is given away. You reward customers, dealers reps, it is amazing the loyalty a free t shirt will get you. I think that’s a separate issue from the original post though, the OP wants to buy some merch and just can’t find any. I’m in that same camp. I like free stuff too but I wouldn’t mind buying/supporting my favorite companies. I’m just saying they could offer that for those that want it with no overhead cost. I’m surprised no one is doing it yet. |
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Post by pessoa on Oct 21, 2022 13:24:54 GMT -6
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ericn
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Post by ericn on Oct 21, 2022 14:12:04 GMT -6
The thing you have to understand is 80% of any manufacturers logo wear is given away. You reward customers, dealers reps, it is amazing the loyalty a free t shirt will get you. I think that’s a separate issue from the original post though, the OP wants to buy some merch and just can’t find any. I’m in that same camp. I like free stuff too but I wouldn’t mind buying/supporting my favorite companies. I’m just saying they could offer that for those that want it with no overhead cost. I’m surprised no one is doing it yet. You have to understand this very simple fact; everybody tells you about the huge margins on soft goods ( clothes) they are absolutely right they are huge if selling that stuff is what you do. I know people in the promotional product biz, what you lear very quickly most manufacturers that sell swag are useally simply increasing the order for the stuff they give employees, dealers etc. when they run out they don’t rush to order more. In our world Fender and to some extent Gibson are the exception, they have both put money into being a fashionable brand. Ask JK about the pain in the ass putting things together and selling t-shirts with through a fulfillment company or direct. Your not going to sell through before you find yourself paying interest on the goods! |
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Post by seawell on Oct 21, 2022 15:22:05 GMT -6
I think that’s a separate issue from the original post though, the OP wants to buy some merch and just can’t find any. I’m in that same camp. I like free stuff too but I wouldn’t mind buying/supporting my favorite companies. I’m just saying they could offer that for those that want it with no overhead cost. I’m surprised no one is doing it yet. You have to understand this very simple fact; everybody tells you about the huge margins on soft goods ( clothes) they are absolutely right they are huge if selling that stuff is what you do. I know people in the promotional product biz, what you lear very quickly most manufacturers that sell swag are useally simply increasing the order for the stuff they give employees, dealers etc. when they run out they don’t rush to order more. In our world Fender and to some extent Gibson are the exception, they have both put money into being a fashionable brand. Ask JK about the pain in the ass putting things together and selling t-shirts with through a fulfillment company or direct. Your not going to sell through before you find yourself paying interest on the goods! But I'm already doing it. It isn't a pain at all and hasn't cost me a dime: seawell-studios-store.creator-spring.com/? What you're describing is exactly how it used to be but there are new options is all I'm trying to point out here. To me, it's not about huge margins or trying to make a bunch of money, it's about providing a product your customers are asking for with no upfront cost and no overhead. Also very little effort...these kinds of sites have such easy WYSIWYG editors built in that you don't even have to be a graphic designer to make something cool. It's so easy, it just seems like a no brainer to me. |
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ericn
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Post by ericn on Oct 21, 2022 16:18:20 GMT -6
You have to understand this very simple fact; everybody tells you about the huge margins on soft goods ( clothes) they are absolutely right they are huge if selling that stuff is what you do. I know people in the promotional product biz, what you lear very quickly most manufacturers that sell swag are useally simply increasing the order for the stuff they give employees, dealers etc. when they run out they don’t rush to order more. In our world Fender and to some extent Gibson are the exception, they have both put money into being a fashionable brand. Ask JK about the pain in the ass putting things together and selling t-shirts with through a fulfillment company or direct. Your not going to sell through before you find yourself paying interest on the goods! But I'm already doing it. It isn't a pain at all and hasn't cost me a dime: seawell-studios-store.creator-spring.com/? What you're describing is exactly how it used to be but there are new options is all I'm trying to point out here. To me, it's not about huge margins or trying to make a bunch of money, it's about providing a product your customers are asking for with no upfront cost and no overhead. Also very little effort...these kinds of sites have such easy WYSIWYG editors built in that you don't even have to be a graphic designer to make something cool. It's so easy, it just seems like a no brainer to me. If it works for you great but again ask JK about t- shirts, because these were for audio guys ( think I have 3). I do remember having a conversation a couple of months ago with a mid size audio manufacturer who told me “ the thing about swag is if I offer it, in this world it has to be on the shelf here so I can throw it in with a shipment or send it out that day as a kiss up. Where it sucks is nobody understands that, that shelf space can make me money!” |
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Post by seawell on Oct 21, 2022 16:27:09 GMT -6
But I'm already doing it. It isn't a pain at all and hasn't cost me a dime: seawell-studios-store.creator-spring.com/? What you're describing is exactly how it used to be but there are new options is all I'm trying to point out here. To me, it's not about huge margins or trying to make a bunch of money, it's about providing a product your customers are asking for with no upfront cost and no overhead. Also very little effort...these kinds of sites have such easy WYSIWYG editors built in that you don't even have to be a graphic designer to make something cool. It's so easy, it just seems like a no brainer to me. If it works for you great but again ask JK about t- shirts, because these were for audio guys ( think I have 3). I do remember having a conversation a couple of months ago with a mid size audio manufacturer who told me “ the thing about swag is if I offer it, in this world it has to be on the shelf here so I can throw it in with a shipment or send it out that day as a kiss up. Where it sucks is nobody understands that, that shelf space can make me money!” Why wouldn’t it work for anyone? If the next round of RGO shirts are on teespring or a similar site, everyone could just order the size they need and JK would have no upfront cost, no inventory and wouldn’t have to ship anything. Again, the topic was about wanting to order merch and not finding it available, not throwing free swag in with an order. |
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ericn
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Post by ericn on Oct 21, 2022 16:37:12 GMT -6
If it works for you great but again ask JK about t- shirts, because these were for audio guys ( think I have 3). I do remember having a conversation a couple of months ago with a mid size audio manufacturer who told me “ the thing about swag is if I offer it, in this world it has to be on the shelf here so I can throw it in with a shipment or send it out that day as a kiss up. Where it sucks is nobody understands that, that shelf space can make me money!” Why wouldn’t it work for anyone? If the next round of RGO shirts are on teespring or a similar site, everyone could just order the size they need and JK would have no upfront cost, no inventory and wouldn’t have to ship anything. Again, the topic was about wanting to order merch and not finding it available, not throwing free swag in with an order. Again ask JK about trying to go that route and, I just a message to my old Roland contact to confirm, what you see in their store is extra give away merch. The most basic answer is this people have tried, in this industry and others, they have learned it doesn’t make $. People may want it but if you have to invest time, effort money and infrastructure why bother? I know of on Yacht builder who went the third party route, tried 3 different vendors, 1/3 of his clients could not believe that they would provide such terrible service. |
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Post by seawell on Oct 21, 2022 16:53:06 GMT -6
Why wouldn’t it work for anyone? If the next round of RGO shirts are on teespring or a similar site, everyone could just order the size they need and JK would have no upfront cost, no inventory and wouldn’t have to ship anything. Again, the topic was about wanting to order merch and not finding it available, not throwing free swag in with an order. Again ask JK about trying to go that route and, I just a message to my old Roland contact to confirm, what you see in their store is extra give away merch. The most basic answer is this people have tried, in this industry and others, they have learned it doesn’t make $. People may want it but if you have to invest time, effort money and infrastructure why bother? I know of on Yacht builder who went the third party route, tried 3 different vendors, 1/3 of his clients could not believe that they would provide such terrible service. You keep telling me why it won’t work but I keep telling you it already is LOL. What are we doing here? 😁 |
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ericn
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Post by ericn on Oct 21, 2022 17:21:58 GMT -6
Again ask JK about trying to go that route and, I just a message to my old Roland contact to confirm, what you see in their store is extra give away merch. The most basic answer is this people have tried, in this industry and others, they have learned it doesn’t make $. People may want it but if you have to invest time, effort money and infrastructure why bother? I know of on Yacht builder who went the third party route, tried 3 different vendors, 1/3 of his clients could not believe that they would provide such terrible service. You keep telling me why it won’t work but I keep telling you it already is LOL. What are we doing here? 😁 Your saying it can work from your perspective, I’m telling you why the guys who people want to do it are telling me why they don’t do it.😁 For the record in the old days I was in charge of a bunch of Swag promos. In fact in my first year at Full Compass after going through 3 large boxes of Bic pens at retail I walked into the owners office and asked “ why are we spending all this money to advertise for Bic? I’ll bet for a penny more we could advertise for our selves!” I was wrong it was .1 cents more per unit, after that all pens at retail had Full Compass on them. For that it was a no brainer and they brought in more new buisness than any local co op adds. Unfortunately none of the co op add money would pay for pens. |
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Post by notneeson on Oct 21, 2022 17:45:11 GMT -6
Someone offered me some Roland sneakers but they were too small. Kinda amusing.
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Post by jcoutu1 on Oct 21, 2022 18:40:12 GMT -6
You have to understand this very simple fact; everybody tells you about the huge margins on soft goods ( clothes) they are absolutely right they are huge if selling that stuff is what you do. I know people in the promotional product biz, what you lear very quickly most manufacturers that sell swag are useally simply increasing the order for the stuff they give employees, dealers etc. when they run out they don’t rush to order more. In our world Fender and to some extent Gibson are the exception, they have both put money into being a fashionable brand. Ask JK about the pain in the ass putting things together and selling t-shirts with through a fulfillment company or direct. Your not going to sell through before you find yourself paying interest on the goods! But I'm already doing it. It isn't a pain at all and hasn't cost me a dime: seawell-studios-store.creator-spring.com/? What you're describing is exactly how it used to be but there are new options is all I'm trying to point out here. To me, it's not about huge margins or trying to make a bunch of money, it's about providing a product your customers are asking for with no upfront cost and no overhead. Also very little effort...these kinds of sites have such easy WYSIWYG editors built in that you don't even have to be a graphic designer to make something cool. It's so easy, it just seems like a no brainer to me. Nice work. I do the same kind of thing, but with Printful. Slap some designs together and boom, in business. I had shirts for my studio, a fake presidential candidate (coming again soon), a luxury brand, and this killer company... www.provehowrichyouare.com/waste-your-money/My kids have those sweet Thousand Dollar Shirts. 😂 ericn, it's literally free to set up an account on these sites. It's like 12 bucks per shirt printed, but the customer pays the supplier and they ship it to the customer. Inventory free and totally hands off. Set whatever price you want (as you can see from my link above). |
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Post by drumsound on Oct 21, 2022 20:11:33 GMT -6
Yeah, when I worked in MI I went years never buying a T-shirt. The thing that kind of sucked is at Full Compass sales had to wear a Shirt and Tie so you couldn’t wear swag except on casual Friday. After the first month of casual Friday I realized someone in the building had to look like they worked there and were in charge. So I started wearing a Suit 5 days a week. You poor soul. I found a Fender shirt at Target out of all places. I agree, would love to see more manufacturers have an apparel page. |
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Post by gwlee7 on Oct 22, 2022 14:57:03 GMT -6
Can I beat Chris to the RGO Christmas song where we sing “don we now our gear apparel”?
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ericn
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Post by ericn on Oct 22, 2022 15:09:11 GMT -6
Can I beat Chris to the RGO Christmas song where we sing “don we now our gear apparel”? Apparel-ly You can & you did it with sawg- gear🥸 |
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Post by recordingengineer on Oct 25, 2022 0:37:50 GMT -6
Wow! Thank you all for the responses!
Yeah, I figured it was a cost and hassle thing. Still, I’m definitely always looking for well-known and boutique gear manufacturer swag I can buy and wear, it’s just getting harder and harder to find. It seems almost no one has anything anymore. I’m having to resort to manufacturers I don’t have gear by and never tried, but have always wanted to buy and try for years.
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