Merchandising Company

3 Merchandising Company Success Stories [2024]

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Updated: October 8th, 2024

Creating a merchandising company could be your next profitable venture. In its simplest form, a merchandising business involves sourcing, producing, and selling branded products. Think apparel, accessories, and promotional items customized to meet market demands.

Intrigued? You should be. The work begins with identifying a niche market and suppliers who can deliver quality goods. Your focus will then shift to designing, branding, and marketing these products to captivate your audience. A solid e-commerce platform will be essential for managing sales and ensuring a seamless customer experience.

The desirability of this idea lies in the potential for brand partnerships and the growing market for unique, branded merchandise. While it does require upfront investment and strategic planning, the rewards are compelling—offering both financial returns and the satisfaction of seeing your branded products in the market.

In this list, you'll find real-world merchandising company success stories and very profitable examples of starting a merchandising company that makes money.

1. GoPromotional ($4.8M/year)

Gareth Parkin, the founder of GoPromotional, came up with the idea for his business after gaining experience in the printing and advertising industry. With the emergence of the internet, Gareth taught himself how to build websites and saw an opportunity to launch one of the first online promotional product companies. Through his expertise in digital marketing, he was able to rapidly grow the business, eventually expanding internationally and achieving a turnover of £12m per annum.

How much money it makes: $4.8M/year
How much did it cost to start: $200
How many people on the team: 9

How I Started A $3.5M/Year Branded Merchandise Company After Spending 2 Months In Coma

GoPromotional is a UK-based online distributor of custom-branded promotional products with an annual turnover of around £3m, founded by Gareth Parkin, who learned to build websites for his previous employer before starting the business.

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2. Life and Limb Printing ($960K/year)

Adam Tanaka, founder of Life and Limb Printing, was inspired by his love of music and his experience working in the merch industry to start his own screen printing company. After honing his skills and building relationships with customers, he expanded his business, leading to a record-breaking month in October 2018 with $80,000 in revenue. With a focus on providing high-quality products and exceptional customer service, Tanaka is on track to hit $1 million in revenue by the end of 2019.

How much money it makes: $960K/year
How many people on the team: 3

From Scrubbing Floors To Running A $1M Screen Printing Business

This case study features an entrepreneur who started a screen printing company with no financing or investors, and despite struggling for the first few years, was able to grow his business to hit $80,000 in revenue in October 2018 and is set to hit $1 million by the end of 2019.

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3. Heavy Metal Merchant ($540K/year)

Dave Harrison, the founder of Heavy Metal Merchant, came up with the idea while working in the music industry and realizing the demand for licensed heavy metal merchandise. Starting with just a laptop and his own record collection, he bootstrapped the business and grew it to 6-figure weekly sales, shipping thousands of items per month worldwide. With a focus on authenticity and catering to a niche market, Heavy Metal Merchant has become a successful online retailer in the music merchandise industry.

How much money it makes: $540K/year
How much did it cost to start: $500
How many people on the team: 2

I Bootstrapped A $45K/Month Music Merch Brand From My Living Room

Heavy Metal Merchant is an online retailer that has grown sales to 6-figures/week and ships thousands of items every month to people around the world with a focus on licensed music merchandise specializing on the heavy metal genre and has been profitable for over 12 years straight.

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Read by 5,059 founders