Excuse the typos!

An open letter to you brand “SUPPORTERS”

Support Vs. $upport

We hear this all the time. “Let me get a shirt!” – “How can I ‘rep’ your brand?” – “Yeah, I’m down for that tee!” But are you really down to support these brands?

What does it mean to “Support” a company anyways? Does it mean that you have to buy every product they put out? Yes and No.
To buy all their products would be amazing, and this would be ideal in theory. But realistically, its not financially sound in this day and age.

When a clothing brand goes under , was it because they just plain ran out of capital? Or was it due to overhead and expenditures? Or not enough purchases made to sustain growth into the next season? It could be a combination of things. See, if people are NOT buying the product (we’ll discuss this later), then what incentive do the stores have to keep ordering them? NONE. Retail space is a valuable commodity, and it is not taken lightly.
All store owners want to fill their racks with products that will move. Not sit as Dead-Stock (Not the sneaker-head term either). So when Brand “A” is moving units out the door, but Brand “B” is just sitting there. It would be in the store owners greatest financial interest to try and move Brand “B” at any cost. Even if it means putting it on Sale. With this drop in price for the shirt, it will not only move the tee and put money in the register, but make way for new product. Although the margin for profit will be slim, at least the precious retail real-estate has been freed up for more Brand “A”.

Now why are people NOT buying your products. Well this is a multifaceted demon. But one answer is that people would rather “Get it for Free” than pay for it. We’ve all been there before. The notorious “Homey Hook-Up”. Sure it’s nice to get free goods every once and awhile. I’m guilty as charged. But in turn, it would be nice of YOU (the consumer) to maybe buy some goods too. Do you truly enjoy/respect the company, or do you just love free stuff??? Because if you truly love what the company does, then you would have no qualms in $UPPORTING them. And hey, we understand! Times are tough. So you can’t buy all the things this company sells, and that’s fine. However, there are other ways you can “Support” a company that just gave you free goods. For starters, Be Heard & Be Seen. You see, nothing is truly “Free”. In fact, your ‘payment’ for free goods is being a walking billboard. So wear your free tee to events where people will see it. Talk about it via your social network/media. Think about this, that brand put in some hard work and money to give you what you consider a “free t-shirt”. So don’t walk your dog in it, or wash your car with it. Be informative. You are in one way or another, a communication vehicle for the brand. Now don’t go barking up some tree’s trying to get free shirts in exchange for your undying “support”. Because this type of support can only get that brand so far. (unless of course you’re a social media icon… then that’s a different story)

Now if this brand is a Friends brand or a local start up brand, you should feel even more inclined to not only $upport the brand but also “Support” the brand. That one T-shirt sale could make or break a company. Everyone, no matter how large or small, is walking on that razor edge of success or failure.

Wrapping this up, here are a few more notes on “free t-shirt” decorum.
- Don’t tell everyone that you get “free” shirts. Why? Then everyone will expect free shirts too. (read: Snowball effect).
- Don’t start asking for “free” shirts and not be happy with the design. You just got a free shirt. Stop complaining.
- Wear your shirt with pride and ownership. It’s not your company, but at least act stoked that you’re repping them.
- Know the website on where you can get information for the brand. That’s a no-brainer.

If you took this personal, don’t! Just take it with stride.
Enjoy…

Sincerely,
The Tee-Shirt