Head Start

Selling merchandise is a great way to increase brand loyalty for participants outside race day, and, of course, a very good way to increase revenue from your event.

So, how do you get started selling race merchandise, both online, on packet pickup and on race day? How do you pick and test merchandise items that sell? And, very importantly, how do you manage inventory well to maximize sales while minimizing the risk of costly leftover items?

That’s what we’re going to be discussing today with my guest, Greelayer apparel President, and merchandising expert, Kim Bilancio. Kim has spent decades in the race apparel industry, where, among other things, she has been running the race merchandise programs for Hood to Coast and other prestigious events up and down the country.

And today Kim will be helping us get a feel for what race merchandising is, how it works, what types of events it is (and isn’t) best suited for, and how, when implemented right, it can help increase your race’s revenue, while giving your participants a piece of your race to keep, cherish and showcase year-round.

In this episode:

• What race merchandising can do for your event
• On-site (race day, packet pickup) vs online (registration flow, website) merchandise sales
• Starting out selling race merchandise as part of your registration flow
• Outsourcing merchandise sales to an apparel vendor vs doing it in-house
• How small things like weather can affect merchandise sales
• Guesstimating apparel sizes to order from past data and registration trends
• What types of races merchandising is (and isn't) well suited for
• Working on a commission vs flat-rate basis with merchandise vendors
• Choosing where to set up your merch store on packet pickup and race day
• Choosing products to sell in your merch store
• Picking shirt styles and qualities for your store that work alongside your finisher shirt
• The tech shirt vs tri blend debate
• Including non-wearables in your merch offering
• Including cycling kits and other specialized merch for multisport events
• Printing items on-demand for registration flow merch stores
• Shipping merch to participants pre-race day

Thanks to RunSignup for supporting quality content for race directors by sponsoring this episode. More than 28,000 in-person, virtual, and hybrid events use RunSignup's free and integrated solution to save time, grow their events, and raise more. If you'd like to learn more about RunSignup's all-in-one technology solution for endurance and fundraising events visit runsignup.com.

You can find more resources on anything and everything related to race directing on our website RaceDirectorsHQ.com.

You can also share your questions about race merchandising, growing your race's revenue or anything else in our Facebook group, Race Directors Hub.