Branding Merchandise: How Does Collaboration Produce Great Merch?

It’s simple: people love stuff. But people don’t just love stuff for stuff’s sake — they love things they have an emotional connection to. And that’s exactly what good branding merchandise does.

Branding merchandise is the perfect way to make a lasting impression on people and create a deeper connection with your target audiences. It’s not too hard to do, but there are definitely some tricks to it if you want your branded items to become collector’s items rather than just throw-away kitsch. Let us show you a brilliant example in this blog.

Collaboration for New Year Collection

For its Lunar New Year promotion, Gifts at Races, a merchandise shop under The Hong Kong Jockey Club has partnered up with South Korean artist Mr. Soo Min Kim® (@fseo) for the 2022 “Lucky New Year Designer Collection”!

With over 150K fans on the social media platform, the Seoul-based artist has adopted a 3D Visual Arts perspective with “spot-the-difference” elements to create a series of adorable horse race-related illustrations.

Illustrations of Racehorse, Gold Ingot, Trophy, or Carrot are printed as a “spot the difference” game on “Lucky New Year Designer Collection” souvenirs.

Lucky Dice Squeezy Health Ball

Squeezing a stress ball activates the muscles of your hand and wrist; releasing the grip allows the muscles to relax. The repeated pattern of grasp and release helps alleviate tension and stress, and it is an activity you can do no matter where you are.

Amidst an exciting horserace, why not squeeze the Lucky Dice Squeezy Health Ball to ease your nervousness! You can also exercise your hand muscles and play a game with the Lucky Dice Ball.

Lai See Envelope

Packets containing cash, called lai see in Cantonese is a traditional gift exchanged during the celebration of the Lunar New Year. The monetary amount is not as important as what the envelope symbolizes, which is a wish for luck for the recipient.

Every Lucky Lai See envelope from this designer collection comes in 2 colours, red and yellow. The symbol of luck – a big horseshoe is crafted on an envelope. Through the hollowed horseshoe, the cutified racehorse illustrations are being featured. Lucky Lai See envelopes are made of environmentally friendly materials.

Victory Bowls With Chopsticks Set

Victory Bowls Chopsticks Set consists of ceramic bowls and chopsticks which are much more than just eating utensils in Chinese culture.

This set symbolises luck, fertility, and happiness.

Sending out Victory Bowls and Chopsticks Set to friends and relatives is a great way to share luck and joy with them in the new year!

How Does Collaboration Produce Great Merch?

One of the most significant ways brands can add value is by collaborating with other brands and even artists. Collaboration allows brands to enhance their offering by bringing out the best in others and sharing the spotlight, thereby adding value to their own business.

• Ability to Create A Wide Range of Products

Collaborating with other brands or artists gives you access to a wide variety of specialities and skills that you don’t possess on your own. It opens new ideas and new designs that might not have been thought of otherwise.

Working with another company on a product allows for creativity and innovation to take place because there are different minds coming together to think up something new. This means you can offer a wide variety of products at various price points, while still maintaining the creative integrity of your brand.

• Creates Merch that People Would Love to See

When you collaborate with other brands or partner up with artists, you’re not just gaining exposure to their fans – you’re also attracting the attention of a broader range of potential audiences. By working with someone whose work complements yours, you can guarantee that you are creating promotional merchandise that people would love to see. On top of that, you’ll also be exposing yourself to a whole new audience who might not have heard of your brand before.

• Bringing New Fans Through Your Doors

One of the single biggest benefits of collaboration is that it can bring new fans into your store who weren’t there before. Welcoming new audiences in your business can help you generate new ideas and concepts that will be tailored to their needs and wants. This way, it will be easier for you to attract their attention and give them a reason to return.

You see, this kind of partnership can raise awareness for two different brands and create an opportunity for both parties to reach audiences they may not have reached on their own. A successful collaboration could draw attention to your brand, which means sales of all products.

• Uniqueness in Product Offerings

Collaboration allows you to be innovative in the merchandise you offer without having to master every aspect of production and design yourself. Working with another company means that you can combine your unique traits with them in order to make a product that nobody else has, which makes your branded merchandise stand out from the rest.

This can be a great way to get attention from potential customers who want something new and different from what everyone else is offering.

Merchandise licensing is another exciting strategy that a brand can do to reach its fans. Collaborating with an influential artist or company can help your brand gain exposure through content marketing and expand your presence into new markets.

Our Takeaways,

Building relationships is a crucial part of the process for any business looking to attract potential customers and create profitability. The key to success is to develop a brand that stands out from competitors, engages with its target market, and has longevity in the marketplace.

Collaboration is one of the secrets to designing great merch. When done properly, it can be a fantastic way to enhance a brand’s image and produce high-quality merchandise. What’s more, it can also help promote a healthy relationship between artists and brands.

Why Work With Our Team?

We understand that it can be challenging to find that perfect promotional product that makes your brand stand out and is something your customers will love. So here at ODM, we’re working hard to make sure you get the best, exceptional branded merchandise that will put your brand at the top of their minds.

Together with our design agency, Mindsparkz, we ensure that we are always ahead of the game to guarantee that you will get new and innovative products for your marketing campaigns and promotions.

Contact us today to get started on developing a product that will go above and beyond your expectations!

If you need more inspiring examples and insightful ideas, please feel free to browse through our blogs.

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