The way I see it there are two things that are really exciting about being on intermission. Most simply, it's a month long paid vacation if I want it to be. This morning I went to the gym and slept. That's it. Came home, crawled back into bed and just dozed off with one of my cats while the world went on and worked around me. My only responsibility this morning was not considering too deeply the fucked up dreams that I kept waking up from.
The second exciting thing is this. Using the other slices of my time, free from guilt, exploring the other aspects and interests of my life that I don't commit as much time to. I've been reading more, with greater comprehension, and am able to really lean into things like writing a bunch just for the sake of doing so. Somewhat uncommon for me is actually using this time to pursue some “side hustle” ideas, one specifically that I've been considering for some time. I won't go into mega specifics, but here's the elevator pitch for it.
Concert goers often head straight for the merch tables of artists they're going to see. Whether it's because of exclusive tour only merch, or worrying about sizing and availability, the sense of urgency is something folks who go to concerts often are familiar with. It's one I know well. There's another challenge of merch tables that some might not be as well versed in as I am, and that's the constraints of average sizing. I'm a big dude. My body is larger than most, and a 3XL is really only just comfortable enough for a body my size. The idea of a 3XL anything being available at a show is something I've long since given up hope on. These days I walk up and ask what the largest size they still have stock of is. It's typically only large, and the person working the booth and I share an exchange about how shitty that is, and I'll just take a poster, if they have any in stock.
It's a shitty experience for someone who goes to as many shows as I do, and who believes supporting the band through tour merch is one of the best ways to help them out, especially given the size of the bands I prefer to see, and the distance they've come to play. Couldn't it be better? And not just better for fat folks like myself, but for the bands as well? They have to lug around merch everywhere they go. Sometimes they're crossing borders with it.
What if we had some way of extending the live merch experience for folks who don't fit the standard S-XL sizing that bands bring? Or cut down on the amount of physical media they need to bring with them and declare across any border crossing. You're likely saying to yourself, “Yeah, it's called their online stores. Just buy shit from them there.” A valid point, but one that ignores the feeling of visiting the merch table at a live show. Interacting with the band or friend of the band with the responsibility of taking money for wares. If it's not something you recognize as valuable, that's fine, and I can't argue that it is, but know that there are many people to whom it is valuable, and a part of the experience for the night. So wouldn't it be great to satisfy anyone who visits them?
My idea is called MerchTable. And what it is, effectively, is a process whereby bands can sell their touring merch at the show and it will be shipped to the attendant at a later date. This keeps the organic encounter of fan and performer alive, allows exclusive sales opportunities for things like tour only merch that they may not want generally available until after all the dates, and can help offer more inclusive sizing as a default without having to haul around 500 boxes of shirts of all shapes and sizes.
It could act as a sort of plugin or extension to whatever product management system they use (I work for Shopify, so my brain defaults to that), so instead of selling a shirt and handing it to the customer, they sell a shirt, take some info, and give them their receipt. The shirt gets fulfilled after the show, sent directly to the purchaser.
This is more nitty gritty than I thought I'd go, but yeah, that's the extended elevator pitch. So during this intermission I'm going to be trying to have conversations with bands and touring managers, as well as fulfillment companies, merch producers, and anyone in or around that process (fans included) to see what kind of shape it takes.
If you or anyone you know fits the description I'd love to chat more with you and/or them about this. Not looking for anything more than information at the moment, but gauging interest of any applicable parties is next on the list.
Think you can help in some valuable way? Let's chat about that as well.
<3 flurp