We are excited to announce the introduction of new merchandise into the Michael Grimm Store. Upon the completion of The Red Album, the finances were drained too much to turn around and invest in a bulk order of new T-shirt designs for fans to enjoy but fans of course wanted souvenirs to go with the new release. So, we decided to partner up with a print-on demand company that would be able to utilize the amazing designs that Neal Portnoy created for the album and apply them to multiple products for fans to enjoy! There are of course both pros and cons to print-on-demand merchandise, but overall it will allow us to provide fans with a variety of merchandise in a multitude of designs without having to invest thousands of dollars in production and storage.
Lets talk about some of the pros to the print-on-demand service we have chosen. First off, it integrates seamlessly with our current storefront so fans won't even notice the difference. We chose a company that provided comparable quality in material to what we already provide and what fans expect from the Michael Grimm brand, so fans can shop with confidence knowing they are buying quality. There will be a lot more choices being added to the store in the coming months that will give fans a much bigger opportunity to show their support and sport their "Grimm Gear" without compromising their own sense of style.
The biggest con with print-on-demand is the wholesale cost. Since we are not buying items in large bulk, the cost of each individual item is almost triple, which means the overall wholesale cost is significantly higher. In order to make it affordable to our fans, we made the retail cost just slightly above wholesale, basically making sure all expenditures are covered, and the profits are a wash for the Michael Grimm Store. So why do it? It's simple. While merchandise is income, it is also a source of advertising. We are using this platform as a way to get the Michael Grimm name, brand, image and product out there - advertising, so the items made for print-on-demand we consider advertising items. It will not be all of the store.
The other con of this service is time. We do not stock these items and fans will not find them at shows. Fans will order them online. Once ordered, it will take up to 5 business days from the point of purchase to print & ship and then you have to account for shipping time. So your item(s) will take anywhere from 5-10 days to arrive. However, because it is all integrated together under one store, fans can order in-stock and print-on-demand merchandise in one order. They will ship separately and it will be notated on your packing slip accordingly.
So how can fans tell what is print-on-demand and what is in-stock? We will identify print-on-demand with a POD following the product title and you will see a separate additional shipping charge at checkout.
When is this all happening? This will all roll out with the release of The Red Album and continue throughout the summer and into fall. During this time we will also be designing new merchandise we intend on stocking, clearing out older merchandise - so look for clearance sales - and resurrecting some fan favorites.
We hope the new products will bring fans a new sense of Grimm spirit!