Design
Before I share my profit, let me show you the design I used for selling my merch.
Keyskd Merch
This design was created by Kenneth, and I can vouch for his good work ethic and expertise in anything related to media and production.
I asked Kenneth to create a representation of my personal history, incorporating my collection of gears into a unique shirt design.
And guess what? He did it well. (At least for me)
Design comes in 2 options: a white shirt with a blue print and a black shirt with an orange print.
Let’s list down the gears shown in the design.
SSL 2+ (Sonic State Logic 2+) – Audio Interface
Zoom R8 – Stand Alone audio interface
Nord Lead 2X – Synthesizer
Kawai ES110 – Digital Piano
Novation Mininova – Synthesizer
MPC Live 2 – Beat Maker
Yamaha PSR – Keyboard
I used these gears for playing in shows, recording, and creating beats in my bedroom from 2015 until now. I will discuss the gears in more detail in another blog post.
Launching
I got the design ready and all I need is someone who will produce the shirt itself in bulk. Luckily, a friend of mine, Jason of Minsan Studio, referred someone to produce it.
I’m quite careful on ordering large quantities because I have to consider my cash flow and the market demand.
After I shared the design on my social media, I felt confident because of the positive comments and support from my friends and some strangers.
Pricing
The shirt is Pay What You Can (For a limited time only), but they have to shoulder the delivery fee.
The reason for this is because, I myself as a consumer, find it expensive when a shirt sells for 800 pesos or a thousand. It’s not that I’m not confident in my product, but I consider this early stage as a trial.
Some people told me to do market research first, make a survey or something. Those are good and all, but I think I have to skip that and learn from my unique experience.
Execute-Optimize-Take note-Repeat.
In addition, I want people who buy my shirt to get the best value. I will set a fixed price for this merch starting next year, considering its demand.
Profit
Since it is a pay-what-you-can model, I have lost track of the exact amount I earned for this endeavor.
Also, I give it for free to people who deserve it (organizers who booked me, roadies, bandmates, etc.).
On average, people pay around 500 to 600 pesos. Sometimes they pay 1000 pesos if they feel generous.
The cost of making a shirt is about 300 pesos. By my estimation, I sold around more or less 140 pieces of shirt.
My profit then, is around
28k-35k Pesos or ($500 to $600)
This being said, I used this profit to pay for things like fuel, practice sessions, roadies, photographers, and the allocation of funds needed to record my upcoming releases.
Not bad for a trial run
But please remember that this duration runs for 20 weeks or 4 months.
This is because I am busy.
Challenges, learnings and realization.
The main challenge is managing my time effectively.
I have a lot going on in my life. I have Autotelic and I make beats on my own. I also do work for other clients. On top of that, I have to do adulting stuff like cooking, maintaining my apartment.
And, of course, I make sure to spend time with my loved ones. My parents are aging, so I try to have meaningful moments with the people who are important to me.
As a one man team, it can be quite difficult to find time to focus on selling merchandise. The process is not automated yet for several reasons.
- I want to connect personally to people who are buying.
- The price is not yet standardized/fixed.
To solve this, I need to organize the automation and improve the system. This could involve tasks such as creating a website or setting it up to ecommerce platform.
Is it worth doing?
For me , yes.
Selling a merch business is a valuable addition to an artist’s financial ecosystem.
This is because relying solely on income from music streaming is not sufficient to support day to day living expenses.
Say for example, according to my TuneCore dashboard, I have earned only $2.08 from thousands of streams. I believe this number will change given that I’m only starting on building my catalogue.
Follow me on streaming platforms by the way.
The Real “Profit”
Sometimes it’s not just about the money. The real profit for me is the learning I gain from doing these things. Another real profit is making friends with strangers and connecting with those who buy and support me. I know they not only like the merchandise, but they appreciate what I do. They support the philosophy and support who I am.
This is a big deal for me personally and gives me a great boost to continue my creative pursuit.
This thought alone has made me rich, not in terms of money, but in terms of increased confidence and meaningful connections with people.
Shameless plug
This shirt is still Pay-What-You can.
DM my socials to get yours.
Instagram
Facebook
Twitter
Tiktok
New music Friday – November 17 , 2023
Cover art by Lone Island | Allen Villaflor
"Light Bulb" Out now on streaming platforms 
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