Merch for the win
When it comes to sport, there is nothing better than that winning feeling, right? The moment you know your team has taken it home, after a season of highs and lows, they have finally come through and won the flag. A moment for the champions. Did you know, however, that these moments directly relate to astronomic sales in merchandise?
Sports and merch are a fairytale couple, especially when it comes to that ‘Happily Ever After’ ending that comes from an epic win, a historical achievement or a notable moment for an athlete or team. We know this directly from cold-hard stats. For instance, take the latest AFL Grand Final win by Melbourne against the Western Bulldogs. Epic in its own right after a 57-year premiership drought for the club, this huge achievement saw the sales of merchandise boom more than they had ever experienced in years. In fact, Melbourne sold 3 years worth of merch in the last month equating to $2.7 million. An astronomical amount of merch considering the COVID-19 restrictions and the lack of family day events that were held in celebration of the win. It’s been noted that from the beginning of the finals series to just before the Grand Final was even on, the sales of Melbourne Scarves skyrocketed by 1617% through eBay alone. And that’s only the scarves. The sale of Melbourne guernseys also saw an increase of 863% in the same time period. Let alone the other apparel, toys, footballs, house decor and paraphernalia that was sold, Melbourne Football Club merchandise has been the hottest product of the moment.
This kind of excessive spending isn’t just an Aussie thing. It even happens on an international level, and a team doesn’t even have to WIN! On the announcement of Cristiano Ronaldo’s return to Manchester United soccer club in early September, sales of his iconic number 7 jersey smashed premier league records in just 12 hours after they were released. A total of $60 million AUD was splurged on the jerseys by fans purchasing a total of more than 350,000 units, mind you. Albeit, a truly historical moment for the club and Ronaldo himself (one of the most well-known athletes there is, nothing major), this truly defines the scope and magnitude of merch’s marriage with the sporting industry.
You cannot deny that with these incredible moments in sporting history, fans of the game want memento pieces to acknowledge the memory of that winning feeling. Showing support for your team and expressing yourself with merch has almost become a passageway into showing your allegiance with a club. It’s about embracing the story and branding yourself with the team you support as a part of who you are almost to the point where it becomes a slither of your personality. Just as sports have become a universal language for people to relate to one another all across the globe, sports merchandise has become the fashion to communicate that conversation.
However, sporting merchandise doesn’t have to be the traditional club colours as we know it. More and more we are seeing true creativity being enjoyed and expressed by talented and clever individuals. One brand that we recently discovered is from the creative legends at The Carlton Draft. This quick-witted brand has seamlessly combined sports and pop culture to target a classic Australian market that loves footy and cricket, selling apparel and merchandise that celebrates Australian sport in a humorous and clever way. Their play on words and particularly players names has made them incredibly popular and widely embraced by many fans of the sporting codes and creatives who just love the merch.
Merch matched with monumental moments, particularly around sports and key events are a great pairing. They let those winners hold onto that immense satisfactory feeling of a success and can be kept for years to come as happy-educing memento. When it comes to your business and Merch, think of an event, a celebration or a win that you can capture in a memento for your team to reflect on.