The curse of being an underfunded startup within the face of simple comfort.
My firm had one rule after we determined to promote merch:
Let or not it’s higher than something which may get shot out of a cannon at a hockey recreation.
Appeared like a good aim. As long as you ignore the truth that I’m fairly positive my enterprise companion Karina nor I’ve ever been to a hockey recreation. They might be slinging Gucci for all of the fuck we all know.
To make clear, right here’s what we image: Some human-stuffed anthropomorphized critter skates round a rink launching tubed t-shirts into the group. Some ‘Hockey Individual’ (spitballing right here however: Beard? Hat? Twice-broken nostril?) catches the factor and unfurls it to discover a two-sizes too huge, flimsy shirt with a crusty outsized stick-on of the stadium’s sponsor.
It’s such shit, he forgets it within the seat subsequent to him when he leaves. The janitor snatches it up, ties it to a stick, and makes use of it to mop up beer and puke for the subsequent three years. So yeah. That…we didn’t need that.
On the similar time, we’re each extremely suspicious of huge companies.
One way or the other these wires obtained to talkin’ and we determined that Shopify should solely promote two-sizes too huge puke-rag hockey shirts.
So, with 0 analysis, we launched right into a seven-month journey to keep away from Shopify. As a result of: causes. Right here is how all this went.
Spherical 1: Regardless of the reverse of a Christmas miracle is.
We determined to kick issues off with one thing a bit extra distinctive.
We determined to promote…bookmarks!
No, however hear me out. These had been actually cool bookmarks. We had them absolutely illustrated. We went all out. Textual content, shade, double-sided, rounded edges, thick good paper. The works. They got here in a set of six and we had been positive we’d get them out by Christmas.
Besides…who else of their rattling thoughts has ever thought creating wealth off a single batch of bookmarks was a superb plan? No one. So, in fact, there was no person who may make AND drop ship them for us.